


Stars Below

by lovelunarchron



Category: Lunar Chronicles - Marissa Meyer
Genre: Cinder and Thorne brotp - Freeform, F/M, Forbidden Love, Human!Cress, Humans and Merpeople, I'm so bad at tags honestly, Little Mermaid Elements, Merman!Thorne, cresswell, mermaid au, tlc ship weeks
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-01-22
Updated: 2018-09-18
Packaged: 2018-09-19 07:50:30
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 15
Words: 39,402
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9428192
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lovelunarchron/pseuds/lovelunarchron
Summary: Mermaid! AU. Thorne and Cinder watch humans curiously, despite how forbidden or dangerous it is for the merpeople. But when one human catches Thorne's attention, he must make a decision that will change his life forever.





	1. Chapter 1

The sea bleeds red this morning. It's so thick that it makes it seem like nightfall even when they are this close to the surface. It's a good thing, too, because it'll make them harder to spot if someone swims by.

"This must be some sort of record," says Thorne, popping some more seaweed chips into his mouth. "They're blinking out quicker than an anglerfish who's captured his prey."

"Judging by the wreckage of the ship, it could be a total loss," says Cinder, her lips twisting down sourly. She points at the mast, which is split into at least seven jagged pieces below them.

"I called it," says Thorne smugly.

"If only they wouldn't struggle so much. They're expending all their air on panicking. If they just relaxed they could probably hold their breath longer. I mean, look at that sailor flailing around like he's being chased by a shark. All he has to do is shut his mouth and swim to the surface."

"You know most sailors don't even know how to swim, Cinder. Pity for them, lucky for me."

Cinder rolls her eyes and steals one of his chips. "You haven't won yet, Thorne. Even if just one of them survives, you owe me five hundred sand dollars."

"Trust me, sis. No one is going to survive. You said it yourself. A pirate ship must have attacked them."

"There's no other ship around now. There could be someone Above who is sitting on a piece of wood."

"We'll just have to go to the surface to check."

She shoots him a disapproving look. "You know we can't go up there, Thorne."

He grins and flips his fin at her. "If you're willing to accept your loss, then we can both stay right here."

The light in another sailor's eyes goes out, not more than one hundred meters away from them. Thorne always wonders if the humans can see Cinder and him, floating there watching them, just before they die. But humans don't have the same ability to see in the water, he's learned, so he doubts it's ever the case. No one ever focuses on them. Their eyes are always frantic and desperate, too preoccupied with clawing their way out of the water.

Legs are such a drag.

Literally.

"It's forbidden for a reason, Thorne. And they haven't all died yet. Stop counting your seahorses before they've crossed the finish line."

But there are hardly any humans left alive. Many of them are swallowed up so quickly by the turbulent water near the surface that neither Thorne or Cinder can keep track of where they have gone. The only thing that's clear is that they are not able to make it out of the sea.

Suddenly, Cinder gasps. She grabs Thorne's wrist. "We've been here too long! We need to get out of here."

He scoffs. "Slow those fins. Father never notices when we're out here."

"Thorne, the changing sea!"

He glances below them, down into the depths. His pulse quickens at the murky water. They have been so focused on the sea above them that they have not bothered to notice what's happening underneath. The wreckage of the ship is no longer visible; neither are the sailors who have already been lost. The water swirls up at them, angry and raging, as if ready to suck them down.

It _will_ suck them down.

He sets his jaw and takes his sister's hand. Neither of them will be lost today. They take off, first swimming up, up, up, through the debris, as close to the surface as possible.

Too close.

They pass right by a sailor who is still alive, and Thorne swears he sees them. A piece of wood cuts against his elbow and he curses. He pushes onward, holding tightly onto Cinder, and together they use both of their momentum to get as far away from the burgeoning vortex that is forming below them. They break through the surface and then they are Above and his ears fill with furious winds and the cries of sailors—still very much alive.

"She's going to take them over there!" Cinder cries, pointing to the spinning water. From Above it is always easier to see where the center of the vortex is, where most of the danger lies.

"Let's cut back this way," Thorne yells, pulling her towards him. She narrowly avoids getting pummeled by a floating chest.

They dive back underwater and swim away from the current as fast as their fins can carry them, staying right below the surface. It will take them an extra hour to get back home if they go this way, but neither of them has to think twice about it. They have to get as far away from the vortex as possible or they will be two of the souls claimed by the sea.

The change in the water can only mean one thing.

Levana is coming.

* * *

"Where have you two been?" King Kingsley demands, his golden trident nearly skewering the servant bobbing at his side. "I was ready to send out a search party!"

"I'm sorry, Father," says Cinder, dipping her head. "We lost track of time and then we got caught in a vortex—"

"A vortex!" Their father turns bright red with anger.

Thorne raises his eyes to the waters above. Cinder has never been good at hiding the truth, and frankly, she's a little too honest for her own good.

"My fault, naturally," says Thorne, straightening his shoulders and moving in front of Cinder just a bit. "I wanted to show Cinder this new spot I found for tanning." He holds out his muscled arm and flexes. "It's too bad a ship had to flounder right at that spot. I've barely absorbed any sun."

As expected, Kingsley backhands Thorne. Cinder is the one who cries out on his behalf. If the slap bothers him, his father will never know.

"You dare endanger your future queen for your vain pursuits?!"

"She'll be queen much sooner than anticipated if you don't calm down," says Thorne, trying to sound bored.

"I will not be spoken to that way in my castle. In my kingdom!"

"It wasn't really that far away," says Cinder, holding up her hands.

Their father glares at her. "And you! You know your brother is never up to any good. Why would you follow him?"

Cinder shakes her head. He knows she's torn between telling him the truth, because that's what she always does, and trying to come up with any excuse at all to placate him. But if she tells the truth now, then Thorne will have taken the heat for nothing.

He glances at her briefly, hoping she'll get the message.

"It's just…uh," she stutters, "I thought I might find a new type of flower from Above. Something that I could wear in my hair for when we meet Prince Kai."

Thorne has to hold back his snort. Cinder isn't just his sister, she's his twin, and they've always had a special connection between them. But it doesn't take a special connection to know that Cinder is lying out of her tail. Their father would know that if he paid any attention. Cinder has no desire to meet Prince Kai, and she would rather spend her time trying to figure out how the inner workings of sand structures work than dressing up for her future betrothed.

Cinder will only dress up for formal occasions where their father is present, and maybe that's why he thinks she actually enjoys it.

His face softens at her comment, though. "You know it's dangerous to go Above. And near a ship! What if someone had seen you, Cinder? You can't lose your head over some merman, even if he is a prince."

"I'm sorry, Father."

Kingsley turns to Thorne. "And you, ungrateful boy? What do you have to say for yourself?"

"I wish I could be more like you, Father," he mumbles.

Kinglsey grunts, but his initial anger is subsiding, replaced by the usual disappointment he has on his face whenever he looks at Thorne. "As do I. We can consider ourselves lucky that Cinder was born first."

"Only by two minutes," says Thorne with an elbow jab at Cinder.

She looks like she's trying to smile, even though Thorne can tell she's clearly upset.

"I don't ever want to hear about you dragging Cinder out into the middle of the sea again," their father says, coming so close to Thorne that he can see the glow in his eyes.

"It wasn't in the middle of the sea—"

"Anywhere that the two of you could run into a vortex is the middle of the sea," he snarls. "The Sea Witch is forbidden within the three merkingdoms."

"All right, I'm sorry. I won't take Cinder out there again."

"I don't want to hear about any of my children in the middle of the sea. That includes you. Find somewhere else to tan." He gestures at a cluster of young mermaids that are in the back of the courtyard. They giggle when they see Thorne looking at them. "I'm sure one of them can show you a nice cove within the kingdom. Do you understand, Thorne?"

Thorne returns his gaze to his seething father. He wants to say, _I didn't know you cared._ But he just nods and swims away, flashing a heart-stopping smile as he passes the group of mermaids on the way out of the courtyard.

* * *

It takes three weeks before either of them dares to bet on another shipwreck. They still go out into the sea like they always do, where they can be away from politics and the scrutiny of the rest of the merpeople, but they stay closer to the border.

This time, the ship is much smaller, so Thorne is much more sure about his imminent victory. Cinder, of course, always manages to have hope for the poor humans.

"There!" Cinder points and flutters around wildly. "A new one. A female."

Thorne grabs her arm. "I can't see with all the bubbles you're creating. And the females never make it. Haven't you listened to any of the stories? They are the most helpless humans of all. Especially on ships."

He knows she knows this, but his sister isn't listening. She has stopped moving and fixated her attention on the spot where she was pointing. "She's not struggling," she murmurs.

"Then she's dead already." He peaks over her shoulder, though, to get a better look at the female. They've probably betted on at least fifty ships by now, and he's only ever seen a dozen or so that weren't male.

Their father says that legs are what keep females from reaching their full potential. They are small and scrawny and have to be covered up by dresses. The males become sailors because their legs are sturdy and broad.

The females stay at home, away from the sea.

He tries to imagine Cinder sitting at home all day and leaving the adventures to the mermen. It's enough to make him snort. Cinder can beat almost any merman in any race. She was at the top of her class, too, so she can outsmart most of them as well.

She will make an excellent queen someday. Prince Kai has no idea about the force he will be up against if he agrees to marry Cinder.

When he sees the female, it's not her dress that he notices first, though. It's her hair, golden and full and so long that it spirals out around her like the sun. She is _all_ hair.

And Cinder is right. She isn't struggling. She floats almost like she is standing in the water, waiting for something.

Her eyes are open and wide and staring right at them.

A chill glides down Thorne's spine.

"It looks like she can see us," Cinder whispers. "But she's too far away, isn't she? Humans don't have the same vision merpeople do."

"That's what they say," says Thorne, eyes fixed on the female.

She smiles, then, at him, he thinks. Her legs kick out and then she is heading towards the surface, exactly the way Cinder always said that humans should.

Like her ship hasn't capsized. Like sailors aren't dying around her.

Calm.

Her hair drifts around her, wrapping her up and hiding her face from the two of them.

Thorne starts to swim upward.

"Hey!" Cinder yells after him. "Where are you going?"

He doesn't answer. He just wants to see this female who has defied the sea. She's not behaving the way he thinks she should, the way that humans are supposed to when death is at their door, and he needs to see what she'll do next.

His head breaks the surface, but just barely. He sinks down just a bit, so only his eyes are above water. Cinder is right next to him now, but she stays below the water. He can feel the anxiety coming off of her with the way she flaps her fins around and agitates the water even more than the storm above.

The female with the hair is swimming now, trying to reach a large piece of wood that is still floating. She makes it there and collapses on top of it, breathing heavily.

"She survived," he whispers.

A bolt of lightning shoots out of the sky and she screams, though Thorne almost wants to yell out and tell her that it's nowhere near the waters they are in now. The thunder is still miles and miles away.

A hand reaches out of the water and grabs the female by the hair. She disappears into the water.

Thorne dives down, only for Cinder to stop him. "What are you doing? We should get out of here."

He pushes her away.

There is another human now, another female—bigger and older and with much less hair—who has joined her. She is no longer calm. She is struggling quite a bit because the bigger one is holding her down.

"She's trying to kill her," says Cinder.

"Thank you for that astute observation," says Thorne but he is already swimming closer.

"Stop!" she hisses, grabbing him by the arm. "They'll see you!"

"She's _dying_ ," he says. In fact, the bigger female is holding onto all the hair and keeping her from kicking to the surface.

"You should be happy about that. If they both die, you win. Isn't that what you want?"

It is what he wants but it also isn't. He doesn't know why, but something about this human and her hair and _the way she looked at him_ has suddenly made this more personal.

"Come on, Thorne, we should leave."

Despite her struggle, the female opens her eyes again, staring directly at Cinder and Thorne again.

"No."

"You can't help her. You know you can't help her."

"I could."

"Are you crazy? They'll both see you! We are a myth to them, Thorne. You can't put us in danger like that."

The two females break the surface again. Thorne does too, still at a safe distance. Maybe he misread the bigger one's intentions. Maybe this was some sort of saving ritual. He's never seen anyone but merpeople fight, after all.

But the bigger one slugs the one with the hair. Her body goes limp and the vicious smile on the other female's face amidst the storm is anything but friendly.

She begins to tie the hair around the floating piece of wood.

"Thorne," Cinder says, all pleasantries gone from her voice. "You're leaving with me right now."

Thorne stays where he is. The bigger female swims away, towards the ship, which is ablaze on top of the water. The female with the hair floats unconscious next to the wood.

"I think you win," Thorne says.

"I don't care about that. I'll give you the sand dollars if you just leave right now."

The bigger female is barely able to keep her head above water now. She's dragging something behind her, something that looks like a chest, but when Thorne dips his eyes under the water he sees that it's not floating. Perhaps it is another human treasure chest. There are so many of them at the bottom of the sea. Humans will do anything to save their treasure. They have watched many of them die trying.

But as she reaches the piece of wood again, she crawls on top of it. The wood sinks below her, plunging into the sea from the weight. The female with the hair gets dragged down with it.

Thorne darts into the sea. Cinder follows him, still yelling at him to get out of there but he pays her no attention. The bigger female is putting the chest-like-thing on top of the wood now as it sinks.

She lets go.

The wood, and the female with the hair along with it, disappear into the depths of the sea.

Thorne swims after her, flying through the water as fast as he can. He doesn't know what's possessed him, but something makes him need to help her.

She hits the seafloor right as he reaches her.

He pushes the chest off of the wood, but it stays at the bottom of the sea. He tries to pull her up, but the wood resists him against the water and knows he'll never make it on time. Humans have to breathe and he knows they can't hold their breath long. She's unconscious so maybe she has already swallowed too much water.

His eyes dart around the floor, landing on a large, abandoned conch shell. He smashes it against the wood and it breaks instantly.

Thorne saws at her hair, cutting it away from the wood.

Then Cinder has wrapped her arms around Thorne's waist, trying to stop him.

"Leave me alone, Cinder," he growls, still sawing. "Father will kill me if anything happens to you."

"And I'll kill _myself_ if anything happens to you, brother."

"I'm doing this with or without you."

One last cut and the female is free. Cinder, surprisingly, lets him go. Thorne reaches for her and he startles at how soft and cold she is, much like mermaids are. He draws her face into his and kisses her furiously. Behind him, Cinder gasps, but Thorne continues putting as much of his own breath into the human's lungs, hoping that it will be enough to keep her alive.

He takes off for the surface. It's harder to swim with someone else in his arms and it takes him much longer to reach Above than usual.

Once there, the wind whips his hair around. The lightning has picked up and the thunder is closer than before, but he holds the female in his arms, making sure to keep her head above the surface and against his chest—away from the storm.

She's not waking up but he thinks he feels a pulse, though he's never felt one on a human and doesn't know if a light flutter means the same thing.

Cinder is nowhere to be found.

When he fears the lightning might actually hit them, Thorne moves. Crushing her to his chest, he swims away from his kingdom and further out to sea. If he goes back towards his kingdom or the other two merkingdoms, they will kill her and he will be exiled.

Humans are not allowed among the merpeople.

So he swims and swims, exhaustion nearly claiming him, going toward a distant shore that he has never explored, one that only legends speak of.

The place where the ships come from, the place that is even more forbidden than Levana's kingdom.

When he reaches the shore, he collapses over the human, who is safe at last, unable to move another inch.


	2. Chapter 2

The sun has sunk into the sea for three days and Cinder has absolutely no idea where her brother is. She has a million and one guesses, of course, and all of them irritate her as much as her unofficial engagement to Prince Kai of the Common Merkingdom.

Not that she'll share any of those guesses with her father.

"Where is he, Cinder?" King Kingsley demands, entering Cinder's dressing room without announcing himself. "Iko, leave us."

Iko, Cinder's best friend and merlady in waiting, thrusts the brush into Cinder's hands before darting away nervously.

"You know I'm not his keeper, Father," Cinder hedges, dropping the brush and adding a starfish to her thoroughly combed hair. Despite Iko's efforts, her brown locks still look stringy and flat in her reflection. But no matter. If she looks less than perfect today, perhaps Prince Kai will refuse her hand in marriage when they finally meet.

"This is a day of utmost importance for our kingdom. Your brother is due to swim with the royal guard in only an hour and is nowhere to be found. I cannot have our formation out of order when King Rikan arrives!"

"I know, Father. Thorne knows how important this is to you…and to me." She curls her lip as she turns away from him. Thorne knows how important it is, that's for sure. Missing the day of her introduction to Prince Kai will mean losing ammunition to tease her for years. "I'm sure he'll be here soon."

"When was the last time you saw him?"

Cinder cannot face the king. It's too tempting to tell him the truth. _The last time I saw him, Father, he was kissing a human. He embraced her like he would one of the many mermaids of the court._

She didn't like lying on principle, but perhaps she could bend the truth. Her brother did it for her too, after all. "He was flirting with someone, Father. Perhaps he swam away with her."

"The guards have searched the coves in the kingdom. None of the mermaids he usually spends his time with have seen him."

"She…wasn't anyone I recognized. Perhaps they are shy to admit their affections."

Her father snorts, looking for an instant like the son he so despises. "Thorne? Shy about his affections? He does nothing but flaunt them for the entire kingdom to see."

Cinder swims closer and places a hand on her father's wrist. "You should not be so hard on him all the time."

"I will not be hard on him when he learns to hold up the responsibility that is bestowed upon him as prince." He looks at her with a pointed gaze. "He has much to learn from you."

She swims away again, back to her mirror. Her father is naïve if he thinks she is any better than her brother, with her secret stash of human books on engineering that she's collected at shipwrecks, her many escapades with Thorne—not limited to gambling—and her desire to do anything but marry a merman she's never met.

But the king knows none of that about either of them. He only knows that Cinder is crown princess and this, somehow, makes her better. Only a few minutes separated their birthrights, and sometimes she wishes it could be the other way around. Instead, she has her duties and Thorne has his.

But Thorne is arrogant enough to be a king and too prideful to just be a soldier.

"If you see the mermaid he was with, please inform me immediately."

Cinder stiffens but pulls the brush to her hair again slowly. "It could be anyone in the kingdom."

"The entire merkingdom of Angeles is here in the capital today."

"Very well. I'll inform you immediately if I see either of them."

Cinder knows she won't have anything to inform him of, though. If Thorne isn't back by now, he won't be back. And if he's not back…then where is he?

"I'm sorry to burden you with these small details on this important day, but you know as well as I that nothing can go wrong today. One small detail out of place could mean Prince Kai choosing Princess Winter of Artemisia over you."

 _Shells_. If only he would _would_ pick Princess Winter.

But her father holds a secret that few know: the border of Angeles grows weaker and weaker as the Sea Witch expands her territory. If Angeles can form an alliance with Common, they might have a chance at defeating the Sea Witch once and for all. Cinder knows that this is more than enough reason for her to marry Prince Kai. Her father has been working on this alliance since her birth.

It's another reason she shouldn't risk her life—or Thorne's—going out into the open sea, and she knows it. But once she's queen, there will be no excuse. She'll never be able to venture out without two kingdoms knowing where she is at all times.

"I know, Father. I've been practicing my welcome speech with Iko."

"Yes, let's make sure it goes well."

He waves his trident once, in a show of acknowledgement, and swims away, leaving her to her troubled thoughts of Prince Kai and the whereabouts of Prince Thorne.

If her brother has not returned by the time the sea darkens once more, she will tell her father where she really saw him last. By that time, her fate with Prince Kai will be sealed and the king will have nothing else to worry about.

If the Sea Witch has Thorne, they can send two mighty armies to retrieve him.

* * *

Foreign yet familiar trumpets startle Cinder out of her nervous stupor. Iko and Tressa are at her side, fussing to make sure her shells are in place and holding everything up just right.

Iko adds a final touch of pearled strings to hang off the straps and fastens them at her midriff with one enormous pink pearl. "One of the couriers told me that pearls are Prince Kai's favorite decoration. Tressa and I have been combing the kingdom for more of them. This one is from Beijing Cove."

"Thanks, Iko," she says.

"The courier also confirmed that Prince Kai is the most handsome merman of the three merkingdoms," Tressa adds with a giggle. "Perhaps even more so than Prince Thorne."

The two of them squeal like some of the mermaids in court do when Thorne swims by them.

It is true, Thorne is as well known for being handsome as he is for knowing it. He has always had his pick of whatever mermaid would wish to have him—and he does his fair share of picking. The thought of someone who can rival his looks in court makes Cinder almost happy that Prince Kai is about to arrive on their territory. Her brother needs someone to put him in his place, and it certainly isn't going to be all those swooning mermaids.

"Instead of focusing on his looks," says Cinder, "or my _brother's_ "—she gives them an eye roll—"why don't you ask this courier if Prince Kai is kind, wise…interesting? Someone worth marrying?"

"But of course he is, Your Highness," says Tressa.

Tressa, who is a merservant in status, has no concept of royalty though, believing like everyone else that good-looking monarchs must somehow unquestionably be kind as well. Cinder has studied the history of her merpeople since birth and also the history of the other two merkingdoms. There once was only one united kingdom and out of it did the Sea Witch come. Her beauty and sorcery led to the separation of the merpeople, but much of that story has only turned to legend.

Not all who are beautiful can be trusted with power.

"Of course," Cinder concedes anyway, sinking back into her thoughts. She wishes her brother were here beside her, for even though she would probably fight with him for scaring her these past three days, she knows his teasing humor would make her feel better. Or at least, make her focus on other things besides her insecurities.

But there is a vacant spot at the top of the royal guard. She can see it, almost at the left of the throne, where Thorne would stand. Where the captain would stand. It is not yet his title, but a prince among the guards must be honored at his rightful place—even if he has not yet earned it.

The trumpets sound the tone of her kingdom, and Tressa and Iko squeal again, bouncing up and down at her side. Cinder touches the tip of her crown and sucks in a deep breath. She can do this, with or without her brother. She will also assume the title she has not yet earned.

"I am the future queen," she whispers to herself, "more powerful than even my father with two kingdoms below me."

"Announcing Her Royal Highness Crown Prince Cinder of Angeles," says the seahorse herald at the door.

Then she begins to swim, with Iko a few strokes behind her, holding her head up grandly.

The Great Hall of Angeles is filled with many of their subjects, many of them her friends by now, and she resists the urge to wave for the sake of formalities. She joins her father, bowing before him, and then rests at his side. Iko stays ever behind her, now floating farther away from the throne to show her place.

Thorne's spot among the guard is still empty.

The trumpets sound once more, now with the sound of the Common anthem. The seahorse herald's voice booms: "Announcing His Majesty King Kingsley's honored guests, His Majesty King Rikan of Common and His Royal Highness Prince Kai of Common, heir to the throne."

The entire hall dips at the neck in respect but Cinder keeps her chin up. This is her future betrothed, after all, and she will not miss the first moment he comes into the Great Hall.

King Rikan comes first. He holds his head up almost sourly, like he is bored to be there. He is older than her father by far, with silver threads running through his otherwise jet-black hair. He is not unhandsome, though his expression takes some of it away from him.

He swims forward, and then, in comes Prince Kai.

He smiles widely, confidently, like these are already his people. Around his neck is a pendant, much like the one Thorne wears to distinguish himself as a prince among merpeople, but Prince Kai's bears the crest of the Common people. His hair is as dark as his father's, but young and wavy and thick, the kind that a mermaid would do anything to run her hands through. And the mermaids in her court have certainly noticed him already.

Her heart flutters in time with her fins. She'll never tell Iko or Tressa, but Prince Kai _is_ handsome, and not just in a princely way. He reminds her of someone she might meet at the market and fall in love with just over his smile.

King Rikan and King Kingsley greet each other formally, beginning the customary exchanges of two merkingdoms that have long remained friendly yet separate. It is not expressly forbidden to travel between kingdoms, but it not something one does without necessity. There have been some interkingdom marriages, but none that would be of note to someone in a position of royalty. This alliance will be a first, a joining of citizens more than just a marriage of convenience.

Prince Kai stops in front of her and Cinder can hear Iko flipping her fins excitedly behind her. Cinder is caught off guard by Prince Kai's eyes and how rich and deep and brown they are. Her heart hitches, not just at the sight of them, but at the thought of how her brother will surely tease her over them. Her brother who is not here.

"Princess Cinder?" he asks, dipping into a low bow.

Cinder turns to her right just slightly, hiding the part of her fin that has been disfigured since birth. Perhaps she doesn't want Prince Kai to notice that she is less than perfect after all. At least, not until she has had a chance to speak with him.

"Your Highness," she says, keeping her eyes low.

When the formalities are done, they retire into the dining hall after swimming out of the Great Hall side by side. Prince Kai receives just as many deep sighs and giggles as her brother does. Cinder is careful to keep her eyes forward. She will not reveal any of her emotions in front of her father.

"I have heard many interesting things about you, princess," Kai says once they have started eating, his smile growing. "There are many tales of you and your brother that have reached my kingdom."

She fiddles with the pearl on her navel. "They must be rumors, Your Highness."

"Please, call me Kai."

"Kai."

"Tell me, where is the infamous Prince Thorne? Should he not be joining us for dinner?"

Unfortunately, those around them have just reached a lull in their conversation. Her father outwardly seethes, though Cinder wonders if anyone can tell but her. With an eerily calm expression, he says, "Prince Thorne has fallen ill and could not join us. We apologize for his absence."

King Rikan offers his condolences and well wishes for Thorne.

Prince Kai waves his hand. "I am only saddened that I shall not meet him on this visit. Of course, if the princess accepts my hand in marriage, there will be plenty of time for that."

Her father, seeming appeased, returns to his conversation with King Rikan. The other dinner guests murmur amongst themselves and Cinder knows why. ' _If the princess accepts my hand in marriage...'_

Prince Kai has made it seem like Cinder is the one who will need convincing. Like her father hasn't set up this engagement to be completely up to Prince Kai and his interests.

She relaxes a little. At least he is a polite prince. Feeling emboldened by the conversation around the room, she says, "How is that you have heard about my brother and me, when I have heard so little of you?"

Prince Kai glances around the room, as if to see who's paying attention. He wipes at his mouth, but keeps his hand over it and whispers to Cinder: "You are not the only one who has ever ventured into the open sea."

She startles, so much that she drops one of her steamed clams. It lands on the pearl on her navel and tangles with the strings. Red-faced, she fishes it out of her decorations as quickly as she can, then drops it below her.

Prince Kai is trying to hide his laugh. "Nice pearl."

But Cinder narrows her eyes. "I have never been to the open sea. It is forbidden."

"Ah," he says, a smirk on his lips, "it must indeed just be rumors."

"Of course they are."

"I'm sorry to hear that."

"You—what?"

"The rumors were that the crown princess is faster than even the fastest merman in her kingdom. But that princess was seen out in open sea during a race in forbidden waters."

Her heart begins to flutter again, but not because his smile is devastatingly handsome. It is because he knows something about her, something personal and hidden that she shares only with her brother—and of course, the mermen they paid off to not tell anyone that the race had ever taken place. He can hold this over her if he wants, threaten her even, but he's merely teasing her about it, like it's something he's excited about.

Most merman are not thrilled with her ability to outswim them. At least not in her kingdom. Most mermen would not condone swimming out to open sea. At least...not mermen other than her brother.

"Have you been out there?" she says.

His eyes shift to his father, then back to her. He takes a clam and chews, nodding subtly. Her eyes widen.

When he has finished chewing, he says, "Always in disguise, though."

"Have you…ever encountered anyone?"

"No one I wasn't looking for."

"Huh."

He chuckles. "Are you sure you're Princess Cinder?"

When she nods, it's hard to keep the smile off of her face.


	3. Chapter 3

Thorne is only slightly uncomfortable in the shallow waters near the shore. He has ventured Above often, but has typically been within the limits of his merkingdom where there are designated coves that remain unknown to humans. He has, of course, also gone over the surface of the water a few times during his gambling with Cinder.

It is different now, when he is completely exposed in unfamiliar territory. There is something inside him, like an instinct, that tells him to swim away as fast as possible. He tries to pay it no attention. It is just the booming, annoying echo of his father's voice that never leaves him.

Thorne digs his elbows deeper into the sand, propping himself up so he can comfortably rest and watch the female. With only the upper part of his torso and shoulders sticking out of the water, he figures he can almost pass for human. Though the beach he found is completely vacant, he is ready to slip into the water and disappear if someone comes by.

The sun has risen above the waters again. The female continues to sleep on the shore, not more than ten strokes of a fin away from him. Thorne has memorized everything about her during her sleep: her pale skin and the way it reflects the light of the moon, her tattered, blue dress and the thirty-seven lines of wrinkles in the wet material, and, most fascinatingly, the shape of her legs.

They are fairly straight, with knobby parts in the middle before they turn slightly thicker as they get closer to her torso. Her dress is hiked up on one leg, allowing him to see almost all of it.

Thorne left her on the beach as soon as he reclaimed some of his energy and slipped back into the water. He left her lying face up, unsure about how her breathing worked when she was face down, but he did not dare move anything else about her. Even her hair, which is still strewn across her face, covering her nose and one eye, seems like a pearl that is protected by an angry oyster.

She is different from many of the mermaids he knows in his kingdom, and not just because she is human. Her hair, which is now short and cropped, is a color that he has rarely seen below the water. It is lighter than the sand he lies in. It is like the sun, gold and warm and still sticking out like rays.

She is small—much smaller than Cinder—but their faces suggest they are the same age.

He finds he can't stop staring at her.

He stills in the water as her eyes flutter open. She takes a moment to orient herself to her new surroundings. He does not know what she remembers since she became unconscious, but it's clear from the look on her face that she does not know where she is or how she got there.

It is not too late for him to swim away.

He stays where he is.

When her eyes finally land on him, he offers her his best smile—the one that makes the mermaids in court titter and swoon. The female does not do either, but she startles and scrambles up to her feet.

Her feet. Five toes on each one. Sand plastered on the back of her ankles. His eyes trail up her legs.

She gasps and pulls at her dress, as if it can grow longer if she tugs at it. "E-excuse me, sir, I did not see you there."

Thorne is finding it hard to form words, which is almost unthinkable for him. He has often wondered what he would say if he ever met a human face to face.

"I rescued you," he says, his smile growing.

She seems as stupefied as she looks at him, her mouth moving a bit like the fish he eats for dinner. Open, close, open, close.

When he thinks she can't stare at him anymore and his smile is almost ready to falter, her eyes widen's and she takes a step back. "You're the one I saw. Before—you're—you were under the water!"

Thorne is a little more than impressed. She _did_ see him. That instinct inside of him is telling him to swim away now, to not say anything, to let her suspicions fade to distant memories.

He shrugs his shoulders.

She runs at the water. Thorne startles and doubles back, his fin flipping ungracefully. By the time he has retreated into water that is deep enough for him to float in, she has reached the shallow end and stopped. She points at him, eyes wide and blue as the sky. "You're a mermaid!"

He draws his shoulders up and works his fin so that his muscular chest and shoulders are very clearly on display above the surface. "I am not."

"I saw your tail," she says, her chest rising and falling with excitement.

"My tail hardly has anything to do with it," he says, a little indignantly. "I'm a mer _man_."

"Oh. _Oh_." Her cheeks seem to redden, but she is already very sunburned so maybe he is imagining it. "I'm sorry, M-Mr. Merman."

The tension in his shoulders leaves him. He throws his head back and laughs. " _Mr. Merman_?"

He is sure she is blushing now, and it's the most delightful sight. She is genuinely flustered by his presence. In fact, he thinks she might even be intimidated by him, but it's not because he's a prince or because he's good looking. She just has no idea what to make of him.

This is a good thing, because he has no idea what to make of her either..

"I'm sorry," she says, taking a hesitant step in his direction. "I don't mean to be rude. Of course you're a merman and not a mermaid. My name is Cress. Do you—do you have a name, sir?"

Thorne swims to a large boulder that juts out of the water. It is still close enough to see her and talk to her, but somehow this feels like a more appropriate, proper distance. Watching this human walk around in the water is nothing like watching one of them drown with his sister. She is alive, of course, and more than helpless.

"I won't hurt you," she says.

Thorne scoffs. "Hurt me? My sea nearly killed you."

"Your sea?" Her blue eyes widen impossibly more. "Are you a king among mermen?"

He considers telling her that he is a prince but does not know what that will mean for a human. His father has always warned the merpeople about giving away any of their secrets. He shakes his head. It is not a lie, anyway. He is not a king and he will never be a king. "My name is Thorne."

She smiles shyly and nods. "Thorne." She keeps walking in the water, toward the boulder, until only her head is visible.

When she starts to swim, Thorne ducks under the water to watch her. Her legs kick and kick, not the way they did when she was struggling against the other female, but like she is carefree and _enjoys_ being in the water. She is slow, though, nothing like a merperson of course, nothing like him.

He remembers the way her human body felt against him in the water as he swam away with her, leaving his sister and the shipwreck and any trace of his merkingdom behind. He wonders what she would feel like now, when her body is not limp and spent but awake and kicking.

He pops above the surface again when her hands connect with the boulder. She holds onto it with one hand and edges closer to him as though she has found a ledge for her feet. He can tell it is only the boulder that keeps her up, however.

"You are not afraid either?" Thorne asks, staying where he is.

"You rescued me. If you wanted to hurt me, you had plenty of opportunity to do so."

Oh, right. Of course.

She is barely an arm's length away from him now. If he doesn't look under the surface, he cannot tell that she is not a mermaid. It is hard to keep his heart from racing, though, because the mere fact that she is not a mermaid is what separates her from all the girls at court.

And of the hundreds of humans he has seen struggle in the sea, this one kept her calm before death. This one did not struggle. This one _saw_ him.

"You're alright, then?" He smiles. "Cress."

"Never better," she whispers.

He reaches out a hand to her face, then hesitates, his hand hovering a few inches from her cheek. "The redness," he says, pointing, "the dark sand will help ease the sting."

"You know of sunburns?"

"How else do you think I get all of this color?" Thorne spins for her, arms out. "I am well known for having the best tan in my merkingdom."

She looks genuinely impressed, which he is happy about. "You are certainly tan."

"I know."

"There are more of you?"

He knows he probably shouldn't say anything, but when was he ever known for following the rules? He has already saved her. He is speaking with her. "Yes."

"I mean, more than your girlfriend."

Thorne laughs again. "You mean Cinder? She's my twin."

"Your twin? She doesn't look anything like you."

"Merpeople don't have to look alike to be related."

"Oh. You looked like you shared a special connection. That's fascinating."

"Not really," he says. "I'm more fascinated by you. Why didn't you struggle in the water?"

She frowns. "When I saw you?"

"Yes."

"That's why. I saw you and wanted to know if you were real or it was my imagination."

"But you were dying."

"No. I was holding my breath. I was only scared of dying when I went above the surface again. There was a storm going on."

He remembers the way she was terrified at the lightning. "There was another female—an older one. She tried to kill you."

"A female? Oh. You mean Sybil. We call them women where I come from. _Female_ makes it sound a little barbaric."

"Aren't you?"

She looks offended. Her legs kick more fervently, causing bubbles to float between them. "I am nothing of the sort. I am a princess. There's nothing barbaric about me."

A princess? So she is the equivalent of Cinder on land. It makes sense. Cinder is not one to swim away from things that frighten her either—except for Levana, of course. But everyone swims away from Levana.

A small sting of pride swells inside of him. He has just saved a princess. And if she is anything like Cinder, then it was worth it.

"What of this Sybil, then? If you are princess, why would she harm you?"

She shakes her head and turns away from him. She grips the boulder with both of her hands. Thorne can hear the reef yelling below her, not far from where her feet hang. They are nervous about her presence. He should tell them that she is too short to touch them, but he is too focused on Cress. This is the first he has seen of her where she seems worried.

But he knows the burdens of a princess are many.

"If you live in a kingdom," she says, more to the rock than to him, "surely you must know that there is always something that threatens it. This time, it was a friend rather than a foe who turned out to be the threat. She was my aunt and took me on this voyage. I believe our ship was targeted intentionally." Her eyes close and water that is not of the sea leaks from her eyes. He moves closer and is almost directly behind her when she says, "All those people. My people. They are lost because of her jealousies."

He doesn't know why but he wants to comfort her. It is natural, almost, like when he knew he needed to save her from death on the floor of the sea. He puts a hand on her waist, hoping this is what humans do to show their support. She startles and turns quickly, facing him again. Her skin is warm now, not like when she was under the water and unconscious. Not like merpeople.

"I'm sorry," he says. "I know of an evil queen as well."

She lets go of the boulder completely and suddenly he is holding her in the water with just his hand against the dip in her waist.

Her eyes glisten. "Thank you for saving me."

There is something so earnest in her eyes that Thorne almost drops her in the water, forgetting that she cannot stay in it naturally like he can. Almost clumsily, he guides her back to the boulder until she holds on again. "It was nothing," he says, trying to look like an ordinary, dashing hero. "Quite normal, actually."

It isn't, of course, and he can tell she sees right through his nonchalance.

"So, you're okay. Sunburned, but nothing a little dark sand won't take care of. I'll leave you then, Princess Cress." He bows deeply, something he is not used to. The merpeople bow to him and he usually just tips his head. He wonders if she can tell that he is a prince by the way he carries himself. For the first time, he doesn't want someone to know who he really is.

He doesn't want her to like him just because he's a prince.

"Must you leave?"

"Yes, I have a previous engagement and I am far away from home." He doesn't tell her that his sister's future betrothed is coming all the way from the Common Merkingdom to visit them, nor that his father would kill him if he wasn't there.

"It's just—Thorne. I'm sorry but I don't know where you brought me. I don't think we are in my kingdom."

Thorne looks around, remembering the vacant shore once more. It is still vast and empty. Trees and shrubbery meet the edge of the dry sand. Thorne hears only the sounds of the sea, though, and wonders what life lies beyond the green.

"This is not your home?"

She shakes her head.

"But this is the land that we speak of when we think of humans. It is all but a myth to us. This must be where you live."

"Thorne, we travel in ships from one land to another. This could just be one island out of thousands."

Thousands? He brought her here on purpose so that she would be safe. He pushed himself longer and harder than ever before.

"It's okay," she says, taking his hand like she notices his frustration. "I wouldn't know where to find merpeople either. You are a myth to us as well."

Her fingers are small and warm and soft and he should not be thinking about them. He floats closer to her, drawn in by her hand, though he suspects it's only the waves pushing him closer to her. He braces himself against the rock so that he doesn't crush her. Her back is pressed against the boulder and she gazes up at him like a mermaid would.

Like she wants him to kiss her.

"We should find your home then," he whispers.

"Yes," she whispers back, her eyes dropping to his lips.

He swallows hard and dives into the water with a backwards flip, making sure to splash her with his fin. He can breathe more easily here underwater. With the help of the sea, his temperature cools once more. He tries to make his strangled emotions do the same.

 _Shells_.

She is beautiful, this human. Even with tattered clothes and poorly cut hair—he cannot deny it. Perhaps this is what makes her even more interesting. She is beautiful without trying.

This is a _human,_ he reminds himself. Not some mermaid he can have fun with and tease.

This is a human princess.

This is somebody's _Cinder._

He resurfaces with what he hopes is a cool, disinterested expression. "We should hurry. I'll make sure you get home safely."


	4. Chapter 4

"I'm flying! I'm flying!"

Though they are going to lose valuable time, Thorne slows his fin and takes a moment to just bob in the water. Princess Cress, who he holds in his arms, is apparently oblivious to his exertion. And as she has made several such comments since he started swimming again, carrying both of them along, she must also be oblivious to his inability to hold prolonged conversation when he is exerting himself like this.

"That was amazing, Thorne," she squeals, throwing her arms around him.

He nearly flinches back out of surprise because she already has her arms around him, of course, but now she is squeezing him tight. She's not just clinging to him so she doesn't fall into the sea anymore.

The human is hugging him.

Though he cradled her this close throughout all of last night's swim, he's still not used to her unbridled enthusiasm. He would never admit it, but he's never been this close to a mermaid for such a long time either. And Cress is _human_ and still quite a beautiful one at that.

But more than anything, he is beyond exhausted, not fully recovered from bringing Cress to the island. Normally, after a race or a long trip, he would rest and recover his strength. Now, every move she makes sets his muscles on fire.

"Princess Cress…," he says slowly.

Her head lifts off his shoulder and she faces him, her arms still curled around his neck. Her face is mere inches from him, and if he ignores the legs that are wrapped around his waist it's almost easy to forget that she isn't a mermaid in this familiar position.

Of course, her tattered dress is a glaring reminder. A mermaid would never wear anything much besides shells on top. Clothes are not made for the sea and Thorne feels the dress's resistance dragging through the water with each stroke of his fin.

He focuses on her cracked, blistering lips when she says shyly, "Just Cress please."

"Cress," he starts again, pushing gently at her waist so that water can fit between them. The move is subtle, as he doesn't want to offend her, and it helps him relax ever so slightly despite his fingers pressing into the fabric on her waist. "Merpeople don't _fly_. In fact, you will find that we are much more superior to the common seagulls who infest our coves." He taps the side of his temple. "They're idiots."

Cress's blue eyes widen and then she's grinning uncontrollably until a giggle slips out of her. "I didn't mean that you actually fly, Thorne. But when we're swimming above the surface like this, I feel like I'm flying. Like I could reach the clouds! I've never moved so fast in my life!"

"If you think this is fast," he says dryly, "then I can't wait for you to swim with a dolphin. They go so fast, your mind will explode." He steals a glance at her frame. "Maybe even literally in that frail little human body you have."

"A dolphin! Can we do that?"

Thorne groans. "Maybe some other time. First let's figure out where you actually live and get you home."

"Right," she says, trying to hide her excited smile. She leans forward and rests her head on the crook of his neck again, ready to go. "I'm loving this, though," she squeals right next to his ear, squeezing him a little tighter with her legs. "I'm totally fine with taking the scenic route."

Thorne shifts, pushing her off his shoulder to face him again, perhaps a little more roughly than he intends. "Cress, I hate to break this to you but I am sweaty and itchy and haven't rested in two days. This isn't exactly the perfect time for the _scenic route."_ He snorts. "Not that there is one. Are you a hundred percent sure that your island is even in this direction?"

Cress gapes at him. "You're sweaty? And _itchy_? I didn't know that could happen to a…a… _merman_." She whispers the word like she still can't believe he is one.

"The upper half of my body is identical to yours, isn't it? And I am swimming halfway above the water in the sun so that you don't die, am I not?"

She studies the planes of his chest, considering his words.

"And yes, of course I'm itchy. Your dress keeps rubbing against my body. I feel like I'm stuck inside a seaweed grove."

Her excited smile fades. One of her hands falls between them into the water and soon she is trying to smooth her dress down and away from him. Her neck turns a darker shade of red when each attempt backfires.

He reaches for her hand to stop her. "Unless you want to take it off, that won't help."

She startles and yanks her hand away. She lets go of him completely and nearly slips under the water. Thorne takes the moment to sink below the surface as well, closing his eyes in delight at how soothing the water feels against his skin. When he opens them, he sees that Cress is practically flailing in the water, trying to keep her dress from floating upward and nearly drowning in the process.

He tries to help; she flinches away.

Shrugging, Thorne dives down deep, towards the murkier, cooler waters. He keeps an eye on the princess, of course, figuring they can both use a few minutes without physical contact. The waters feel so wonderful and he wishes he could just lay down on the sandy bottom and sleep.

When he notices that Cress is actively swimming away, he pops back up above the surface.

She startles again and lets out a small cry.

"What are you doing?" he says. "I'm tired but at least I'm made for the sea. You look like you're going to hurt yourself."

"If you think," she gasps, swimming furiously, which for him is not so furious at all, "that I'm going to remove my clothes for you, then we can part ways right here!"

Thorne crinkles his brow and tries to think what he said to make her angry. As she kicks in the water, he remembers her legs. His father says they always needed to be covered. He remembers the way she tried to hide them on the beach.

" _Oh_ ," he says, summoning up a charming but apologetic smile, "I didn't mean that I wanted to see your legs. I was merely thinking about practicality. Not only are they itchy but your clothes resist the water, making it harder for me to swim. Don't you feel it now? How the water holds you back?"

Cress stops swimming, but for a human that means she doesn't actually stay still. She kicks and kicks and kicks, panting and looking like she might not be that angry after all.

"You're tired too," he says, coming a little closer. "I didn't mean to scare you, Princess. Besides, you may not know that mermaids only wear shells. We are accustomed to not having clothes."

Cress cracks a smile, which for some reason makes him smile too.

"I know," she says. "I've read all about mermaids, even if you're supposed to be a myth."

"We're not a myth anymore." He reaches for her. "Shall we keep going?"

Slowly, she slides back into his arms, and very, very hesitantly, wraps her legs around his waist again. The giddiness that was there before has gone and though he wished for that earlier, something about her hesitancy unsettles him now.

"I'm sorry," she says quietly. "I didn't understand and got scared. But really, you're doing all the hard work and all I'm doing is slowing you down and making you itchy."

"It's not your fault."

"It kind of is."

"I didn't have to save you."

"But you did." Her arms tighten around him and suddenly she is hugging him again. This time, he hugs her back, if only out of instinct. But there is another one, another instinct that tells him to run away as he does but something about that excites him too.

Even if her dress does feel like seaweed.

"Thorne?"

"I forgot to tell you that it's hard for me to talk if I'm going to swim and carry you. It would be easier if we were underwater, but that's not an option."

"I only have one more question for now."

"What is it?"

She hesitates, then says, "What were you doing by the ship anyway? Is that where you live?"

"No, I don't live anywhere near there."

"Then why were you there?"

Guilt — which is not an emotion Thorne associates himself with — pools in his stomach. He thinks of Cinder and all of their time spent at shipwrecks. He has never felt guilty about his extracurricular activities before, but as Cress clutches him once more, it's hard to keep it at bay.

"My sister and I — we — we bet on shipwrecks. On how many humans will die."

He looks down, not wanting to meet her eyes in case she leaves his shoulder. This reminds him that he still doesn't quite understand why he's going through all this trouble for someone who caused him to lose a bet. He sees her legs underneath the surface and he remembers why. It's a silly reason, but knowing what she knows now, it's probably silly for her to trust him as well.

Cress doesn't look at him though, staying quiet against his shoulder and chest, and he thinks this might actually be even worse than having to face the disappointment in her eyes right now. So he just floats there, unsure of how to proceed. It's the first time he's told anyone besides his sister what he does away from his merkingdom. It's always been their secret.

"Oh," she finally says.

"We should go," he says before she can say anything else. He readies his fin for more exertion and takes off, the water splashing both of their faces as he swims toward another unknown horizon.

* * *

"I have an idea," Cress says.

Thorne looks up from where he is lounging in the shallow end of another shore that is definitely not part of Cress's kingdom. He went as far as he could but even he has limits and needs to sleep at some point. If he doesn't, he fears he will forget even where he himself comes from, and never make it back. From Above, all the islands look the same. He is better with directions below the water, where he spent all his life discovering and exploring all that he could.

The scholars always taught him that the sea was much more vast than anything Above. Now that he is up here, though, he's not sure he believes it.

"What is it?" He yawns and buries part of his fin in the sand.

"My kingdom will be looking for me after they learn of the shipwreck. They will have other ships searching the seas. I think the only way I'll get home is the way that I came."

She is sitting in the water less than a fin's stroke away from him. Her toes wiggle in the sand and he can't help but reach out and touch the smallest one with his finger. "Is this okay?" he asks.

Cress giggles. "They're just toes."

He continues up her toes, counting five and then pulling back to prop himself up on his elbows. "So, are you saying we should find a ship?"

She nods. "They will know how to get me home."

"And the other female? The woman, I mean. Will you be safe?"

"I'm not sure." She pulls her knees up to her chest, always smoothing the dress down to make sure her legs are covered. "Did you see what happened to her in the storm?"

"I was too busy trying to save you."

"And cutting my hair," she says.

"Had to."

Cress stares beyond him, at the sea, the horizon, or perhaps the moon. She shivers and stands up, making the water around them murky. "If she survived, she won't be happy to find out I'm alive. But I have to go home and let everyone know I'm okay."

"Hopefully the king and queen can protect you when you return. You must tell everyone what she tried to do."

Cress sighs. "I don't have any parents. They died when I was young. I am the sole heir to the throne." Her face turns bitter. "My aunt wishes that were not the case. That I would have died with them back then. I suspect that is why she sacrificed an entire crew yesterday in an attempt to be rid of me."

Thorne doesn't know what to say. He is sure that he is an endless disappointment to his father but he is also sure that his father would never try to have him killed. Feeling unloved is one thing; feeling afraid of one's life is another.

"What will you do when you return home, then?" he asks. "If she means to harm you, she will find another way."

"I have made it this far. There are people in my kingdom who will protect me."

"If you are sure, then I will help you find another ship." He gives her a boastful wink. "That is something I have _always_ been good at."

Cress turns away then, facing the shore instead of him. He immediately doesn't like it. Even if he pushes up on his arms, he has no idea what she's feeling or thinking. He has always been rather intuitive about that sort of thing with mermaids, even being able to use it to his advantage. But this human — this _girl_ — is harder to read and with her _back_ to him now while she _stands_ he has no idea what's suddenly wrong.

Her shoulders rise and fall. Her dress is so wet that it doesn't even rustle in the breeze like it did the day before. Tiny bumps prick up on her arms like she's cold.

She turns, just barely, and he sits back on his fin.

"You didn't save any other humans because you weren't allowed to, right?"

Ah.

"Because of the rules of your merkingdom? No interaction with humans allowed, I imagine?"

_Shells and starfish and octopi._

"Yes," he says quickly, then shakes his head. There's no point in lying to her. He sighs. "And no. While it is forbidden to have any contact, it's forbidden to even be outside of the merkingdom in the first place. I suppose if I wanted to save someone earlier, I could have. But it's never even crossed my mind."

"On my ship..," she says, turning around fully to face him. Her eyes are wet, once again not from the sea. "On my ship there were a lot of kind people who could've used rescuing. Some of them were the ones sworn to protect me. I don't think they survived unless Sybil allowed it."

From the way her shoulders shake now, it's clear this has been bothering her for a while. Thorne is used to her presence by now, and it almost feels strange to be talking to her without having her in his arms. Especially now, when she is upset and it is because of him.

For the first time in his life, he wishes he could push up on two legs.

To go to her.

To hold her.

"I'm sorry," is all he can offer.

"I need some time alone tonight, I think." Cress walks away from him then, to where he cannot follow her. "Thanks for bringing me this far safely."

As she slips behind a boulder, Thorne slips back into the water.

He is tempted to leave now and return home immediately. If he leaves now, maybe he can make it back in time for the arrival of Prince Kai of the Common Merkingdom. He has risked more than the human princess will ever know just by making contact with her. She should be grateful.

Even as he thinks it, he knows it's a lie. He saved her out of mere curiosity, not out of some heroic intention. Perhaps this is what makes him want to leave the most. She has understood that about him now. He is not at all the mermen that she had thought.

The one that saved her and made her _fly_.

He stays anyway.

Thorne comes back up to the surface and hides himself behind a coral reef, where he can lift his head barely above the surface to see the shore. He should sleep in the protection of the depths of black, hidden waters, not here. But there is only water behind him, and if he wakes before the sun comes up again there is no way anyone that is not of the sea can see him. Not even Cress should see him.

With that thought, he finally allows himself to succumb to the rest he desperately needs.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello and welcome back to the TLC Sea!verse. As of now, I have two versions of this story in my head. One is only a few more chapters and one is a more fully fleshed out fic. Is anyone interested in either?


	5. Chapter 5

Cress wrinkles her nose as Thorne devours the fish. She prods her own fish with the stub of her toe, like she is unsure whether or not he actually killed it.

"I assure you, it's quite dead."

She withdraws her toe and pulls her legs into her chest. "I don't think I'm that hungry after all."

"So humans don't have to eat for two days?"

"No…. I suppose we could go that long without eating, but it's not good for our bodies."

"Then eat."

Thorne polishes off the fish to the bone, then chucks the skeletal remains behind him. He lays back in the water with his tail pointed at the beach. Cress still doesn't eat.

"My sister would yell at you for wasting food. There are too many who go without."

Cress blinks at him. "But there are millions of fish in the ocean…billions even! How can merpeople not have enough food if this is what you eat?"

At once, it's like he's back with the aristocrats in his father's court. Cinder is always fighting with them, hoping somebody will understand her plea for the distribution of equal shares of food. The merpeople of court like to use the same argument as Cress does now.

He's never had to worry about food, so he typically brushes off his sister's comments as much as the aristocrats brush them off. "Merpeople are not all equal," he says, feeling like an imposter. "Young mermaids and men cannot go off on their own in search of food. They are at school or at home. They need supervision. And what of those who work all day long? When do they have time to catch their meals? And those who are disabled?"

"Disabled mermaids? Mermaids — and men — work? _School_?" Cress stares at him like one of his teachers might, like she knows he didn't do his homework. But she just shakes her head and takes the fish by its tail, letting it dangle in front of her. "Humans have the same problems."

"Eat," he insists. "We really need to be going."

"Can you…not look? I'm used to eating with utensils."

Thorne sighs and turns around, his thoughts drifting to his sister. She must be getting ready for Prince Kai's arrival now. She will wonder where Thorne is, why he hasn't come back. He tries not to think about it. What's important now is finding a ship and getting Princess Cress back to her people.

Behind him, he hears slurping and smacking of lips and has to smile. She may be a princess, but she is not so ladylike after all. Everything about her is still so different from the mermaids he meets at court.

* * *

"Are you sure you know where we are?" Cress asks.

"Oh yes. A merman has a special bond with his sea."

"But the sea is so big. We've been swimming almost all day."

Thorne slows down, still unable to keep a casual conversation while he holds Cress and swims at the same time. He releases her, letting her hold herself up for a minute while he works out the kinks in his shoulders. "This time, Princess, we've been swimming toward my kingdom. I know the patterns of the water around here."

A delighted smile lights up Cress's sunburned face. "We're near your home? Why didn't you say anything?"

"It's still a day's swim away." He points to the left. "Half a day away is where my sister and I watch for shipwrecks. I can't take you there in case any other merpeople are on excursions outside of the merkingdom. It's unlikely, but I can't risk it."

"Because I'm human?"

He nods, then reaches out to tickle her side. "Yes. Some other merman will snatch you up, and then what will I do?"

Cress shrieks and swallows seawater. She splutters and chokes. Thorne scoops her up into his arms once more. This is what he gets for making a joke.

For flirting with a human.

"Sorry," he says.

Cress's arms wind around his neck as she catches her breath. She bites her lip and stares into his eyes. "Thorne, in your merkingdom…do you have…someone waiting for you?"

"Besides my sister, you mean?"

She flushes. "I mean…someome…whom you love? Perhaps whom you wish to marry?"

"Oh." Thorne smirks. "There are many who wish to marry me, at least."

Cress runs her finger along his collarbone, thinking. He thinks he will burst if she keeps on touching him like this. It is too intimate, too casual.

"But no one you wish to marry?" she finally says.

"None."

Their eyes clash and questions form in Thorne's mind about why she wants to know. With a mermaid, he might make a joke right now to ease the mood. To throw her off balance, instead of him. But the last time he made a joke, she nearly drowned.

"What about you, Cress? A princess must have many suitors vying for her hand. Especially one like you."

"One…like me?"

He grins. "Just answer the question."

Cress's finger pauses below his neck. Her eyes lower to the same spot. "There are some suitors, yes. But none that my aunt has approved of. And none that I…approved of either."

"That must be hard."

Since she doesn't know he's a prince, he can't tell her how much he understands. As a prince, his father has high expectations about who Thorne will marry. Luckily, he has not yet found anyone he deems suitable for Thorne. He is too preoccupied with Cinder and her union with Common.

"I've never even kissed anyone," Cress blurts.

"No?"

She looks up. Shakes her head. And then…her eyes dip to his lips. Thorne swallows and glances up at the sun. He must be getting heatstroke. Of all the people that Cress could approve of, it certainly wouldn't be him. Human signals must be different.

"I bet you've kissed lots of girls."

He shrugs his shoulders. "Only mermaids."

Her eyes twinkle. "Of course. Mermaids, not girls."

"We should keep moving. I've only been out in these parts a few times and we're fairly close to a territory I'm not comfortable with."

Cress's eyes dart around, as if danger is imminent. "What territory?"

"There is a sea witch in these parts."

Cress gasps, and if Thorne weren't thinking about Levana, he would've thought it cute.

"That is how I know where I am," he says. "The sea witch always comes for the shipwrecks sooner or later. She is the queen of destruction."

"But you said you bet on shipwrecks."

"We do. But we make sure to respect her territory and leave if we see any sign of her."

"What's the sign?"

"I'll let you know if I see it," he says dryly. "Now, we're close enough to where my sister and I usually go that there should be some ships around here. They tend to crash over there"—he points to the left again, towards his kingdom—"because the waters are more turbulent. The clouds like that area. They devour the surface with storm and wind. I believe, if I'm not mistaken, that the ships will come by this area before they head in that direction. That means we could catch one before it hits the turbulent waters. You could warn them to not go there."

"Thank you, Thorne." Cress's eyes are bright and she looks at him like he is most wonderful person she has ever met.

His heart swells.

"What will we do if we see a ship?" she asks.

"Drop you off?"

"No, I mean…so they don't see you." Cress traces her finger up the other side of his collarbone, sending a shiver down his spine. "I wouldn't want anything to happen to you."

"Don't worry about me," he says, then grabs her hand before she can touch him with it any more. Despite his best instincts, he laces his fingers through hers and drops their intertwined hands below the surface. For a moment, they just bob there together, holding hands.

A loud wail rings in Thorne's ears, but when he looks around, there is no creature around them. He turns around, searching for the source of the sound. It is one he has never heard before.

Cress says, "It's a ship! I can hear it, but I can't see it yet!"

Thorne, admittedly, has never seen a ship that isn't wrecked. From under the sea, of course, he has seen their underbellies many times. But to venture Above when one is passing by? It is strictly forbidden, and a law that Thorne has always taken seriously.

Drowning sailors are one thing. Living sailors that could spear him like they do fish are another thing entirely.

"Swim in that direction!" Cress points towards Levana's kingdom.

"I can't."

"But there's a ship, Thorne! Can't you hear the klaxon?"

"I can't, Cress. That's forbidden territory. People who go there…they don't come back the same."

"But you went into forbidden territory before. To see the shipwrecks!"

Thorne takes a breath. "That was different."

Cress takes ahold of both his cheeks. "I have to get home, Thorne. We came all this way to find a ship and now a ship is here."

Thorne looks at the human in front of him — the beautiful princess that he holds in his arms, has held in his arms for so long now that it feels natural. Maybe it's not a terrible thing if she doesn't catch that ship. Maybe they can spend more time together.

He sends that thought away. Humans and merpeople don't coexist. They are myths to each other. He cannot keep this girl for himself. She's right — this is her ride home. Their journey ends here.

The air around them is calm. Sunny. The sea witch does not come out in the sun. Her presence is always preceded by a vortex. Maybe he can risk it, if he stays far enough Above.

"All right," he says. "But I'll only venture just a bit in that direction. The ship has to come to us at least halfway."

"It will."

He nods. She is still holding his face. He wishes he were holding hers.

"Thank you for your help, Thorne." She strokes his cheek. "I'm forever in your debt."

His lips tug into a grin. "I like the sound of that."

She giggles. "Seriously, Thorne. I wish there were a way I could repay you."

Thorne caves and reaches for her cheek too. She stops giggling. "It was my pleasure, Princess Cress."

"I forgive you for not helping my people," she says softly. "I was wrong to be mad. Neither of us knew anything about the other before we met. But now that I do know you… I think you have a big heart, Thorne. I wish… I wish this wasn't goodbye."

Thorne's heart rate picks up. He wishes this wasn't goodbye either, but he can't follow Cress if they continue on through the rest of Levana's territory. He'll have no way of knowing where Cress's kingdom really is. No way of returning to her shores, should he so desire, to watch her silently from the sea, while she walks along the beach with the rest of the humans.

He imagines finding a comfy, secret cove in her kingdom. He meets her there from time to time, when the two of them want to get away from their royal duties. It is an impossible thought.

"I'll miss you," she says, and that's all it takes for Thorne to press his lips to hers.

The move surprises both of them. He pulls away before he can forget himself, forget who he is.

Cress touches her fingers to her lips, as if she can still taste him on her.

"I'm sorry," he says, blinking. "Your first kiss — I'm so sorry."

But Cress's awed look turns into a shy smile. Then, before he can register it, Cress kisses him back. She melts against him. He holds her close, so close. His kisses are gentle and careful but generous. He gives more of himself to her than he has ever given a mermaid, and by the way her lips claim him, he knows she knows this.

His thoughts run wild. He wants to sink into the sand with her. Flip her over. Trail kisses down her neck. Show her all the things she has missed by never finding a proper suitor. Make her remember him forever. Make her forget anyone who would come after.

But she will drown if he does that, so he settles on kissing her this way — this very human way, with both of them upright and proper. She is a princess, he reminds himself. She is worthy of that. She is worthy of so much more.

And with another wail from the ship, they pull away, gasping, and head toward the horizon.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I have Mono so updates might be a little sporadic for a while. Hope you enjoyed the Cresswell in this one :)


	6. Chapter 6

Cinder attaches the pearl above her navel again. Prince Kai did comment on it yesterday, even if she's not sure whether he was teasing or not. She can't quite figure him out, but she's had a strange, swooping sensation in her stomach since he arrived yesterday.

She made Iko and Tressa leave just a few minutes ago because all of their squealing was getting sent her a headache. Yes, she knows that he is handsome. Yes, she knows that he has a beautiful smile. And Iko doesn't need to remind her every three seconds that his eyes are deeper than the sea.

Someone clears his throat behind her.

In her mirror, Cinder spots Prince Kai floating there, at the entrance to her chambers. She jerks out of her stool in front of the mirror and straightens, hiding her disfigured fin. "What are you doing in here?"

" _Shells_ ," he mutters, looking supremely uncomfortable as his eyes drift to her bed. "I'm sorry, Your Highness. I didn't realize these were your private chambers. Your merlady-in-waiting told me I could come back here to find you."

Cinder's eyes narrow. "Did she now?"

"My sincerest apologies." He bows and leaves.

Cinder flutters after him. "Wait!"

Kai turns.

"You were looking for me?"

Kai's shoulders drop some of their former tension. He rubs the back of his neck. "I was, Your Highness."

"If I'm to call you Kai, you're certainly going to call me Cinder."

Kai smiles then, finally, and some of Cinder's nerves evaporate. "Cinder," he agrees. He stares at her a little too long as she waits for him to tell her why he's here. "Oh! Right. I came to find you because I was hoping to ask for the pleasure of your company today."

She bites the inside of her cheek. "You mean…besides the scheduled activities?"

"Yes, exactly. I know we've only just met, but it would be my honor to spend more time with you. If you want. I find I can't always be myself around big crowds. In front of them, I have to be Prince Kai. And your merkingdom doesn't know me yet, so I have to make a good impression."

"Do you intend to make a bad impression in private?"

The tips of his ears tint red. "Of course not. I merely meant—"

"I'm kidding. I get it. I'd be nervous, too, if it were my first time in your merkingdom."

"Thank you for understanding."

"Sure thing." She swims closer, always careful to keep her disfigured fin tucked on the opposite side of him. "What did you want to do?"

Kai shrugs. "Anything that doesn't involve public speeches."

"What about paparazzi?"

"I'm not keen on involving them either."

Cinder laughs. "Then perhaps we should stay within the confines of my father's palace, for now. There are beautiful gardens that we could swim through. Coral reefs and imported marine plants, that sort of thing." She hides her swallow as she says it — she's definitely not thinking about how her brother likes to take mermaids to a specific coral reef near the borders of the garden. Nor how she's caught him there several times because it really is the perfect place to have a private moment.

She focuses on her missing brother as she swims next to her future betrothed. If she's meant to marry him, he'll eventually have to meet Thorne, of course. Wherever he is.

As if Kai is reading her mind, he says, "I didn't see your brother this morning at breakfast. Is he still ill? Or perhaps…," he says a little too innocently, "finding company elsewhere?"

Cinder is glad that at that moment they have to make a turn around a corner, and they pass several palace guards. It's easy to see that Kai doesn't buy that Thorne is ill, and apparently he's heard more rumors about the Angeles royal family than he's admitted.

She composes herself and forces any worry off her face as they leave the guards behind. She thinks about the female that Thorne tried to save. She wonders if he managed to save her. If the female even bothered thanking him, or if she's speared him up like in all the human tales they've read. "No, he's certainly not off with a mermaid this time."

"Ah. Then I am sorry to hear about his health and wish him the speediest of recoveries."

They've reached the garden, and before Cinder can show him anything about the exotic marine life of the Angeles Merkingdom, Kai takes off down one of the rows with a laugh. Cinder chases after him, wondering where in the _starfish_ he might be going. She catches up to him at the end of a row displaying phytoplankton from all over the sea, right where the garden opens into a seagrass meadow.

"Where are you going?"

He catches his breath even as he laughs. "Just wanted to see if the rumors were true. And _shells_ , they weren't wrong. You're so fast!"

Cinder puts her hands on her hips. "You say that as if the only way to be fast is to go into forbidden waters. Haven't you ever met a mermaid who could keep up with you before?"

He grins. "What do you think? Do the mermaids keep up with your brother?"

"I do."

"I'm sure you have no reason to let him win, unlike the other mermaids."

"I suppose you're right. They all have dreams of being with him and don't understand he's not impressed by just any pretty mermaid who lets him win." Despite that, she knows he still has no problem taking them back here to the coral reefs or to a private cove. It's one thing that's always bothered her about her brother. If he doesn't care for them, why does he waste his time?

She realizes, then, that those coral reefs are dangerously close. She swims into the open seagrass meadow, but Kai doesn't follow her. No, of course, most handsome prince in all of the three merkingdoms swims directly into the coral reefs. With a sigh — and, she tells herself, because he is her guest and the guest gets to decide where to go — she swims after him.

"These are beautiful," Kai says. "Do they mind if I get close?"

She gapes at him, but then she realizes he doesn't mean getting close to her. He's worried his presence will make the reef and its inhabitants nervous. She closes her mouth quickly, feeling like an ugly fish. "I don't think so. They're used to having palace inhabitants come by. I think they're more domesticated." She reaches her hand out and touches the reef gently. A beautiful, fluorescent fish swims out, glides up her arm, and swims into a different hole. "See? No nervous screams like the ones in the wild waters."

When Kai smirks, she adds quickly, "I mean, that's what I've heard. That they get nervous out there. Is that how it is in your merkingdom?"

Kai swims closer, practically backing her into the reef. "It's been my experience that mermen tend to be the nervous ones." His hand brushes her waist, but his touch is only there for one second before he leans it against the reef behind her. "Especially when there are pretty mermaids right in front of them."

Cinder wiggles her way to the left, leaving Kai in front of the space where she floated just a moment before. "Pretty mermaids. Right. I'm sure you have to deal with them a lot."

"That's not what I meant."

She tries to laugh airily, but a few bubbles get stuck in her throat and she thinks of how she must sound like an ugly fish too. She distances herself a little more. "Not to worry, Prince Kai. You forget I have a brother. I know all about the ways of mermen, especially good looking ones." She turned away, hating herself. "I mean, princes. I know all about the ways of mermen, especially those that are princes."

Kai swims in front of her and lifts her chin. His eyes are serious, concerned. "I'm sorry for whatever I said. I can see it has upset you."

"No — it's —" She scrambles for anything that can make her seem less awkward. She doesn't know why she even cares, but suddenly she does, and all she can think about is all the mermaids that have kissed Prince Kai. The merman that she is supposed to marry one day. Maybe even soon. "I'm just worried about my brother," she hedges.

Kai's demeanor shifts and he drops his hand. "I would understand, you know, if it was something serious. You could tell me. About the illness. My father…he is also ill."

Cinder's eyes widened. "His Majesty King Rikan is not well?"

"Why do you think he's pushing this marriage?"

"But…" She thinks back to all the lectures her father has given her about needing an alliance with Common. It has never occurred to her that perhaps Common needs this alliance as well. "Does my father know?"

He shrugs. "I'm not really sure anyone knows the full extent of it, so I hope I can count on your discretion."

"Of course."

"I'm not ready for him to die," Kai admits. As he says the words, he looks ten years older than he really is. "I've thought about…about taking him to see Queen Levana."

Cinder gasps. "No, Kai, you can't!"

"What other choice do I have? Her magic could fix him."

"She's dangerous. Her magic will come at a cost—possibly one worse than your father's passing. And then Common will be in debt to the Sea Witch!"

"I know," he says miserably. "I know it's not really an option. I met her once, you know, when I was twelve. She wanted to see if we might be a match."

Cinder has to force bile down her throat. "But she's so _old_."

"Luckily, everyone agreed. But she was wretched, Cinder. Truly evil."

She thinks about telling Kai that one of her father's plans is to unite two of the merkingdoms against the Sea Witch through this marriage. That would never work if Kai took his father to her. But Kai keeps talking.

"I'm not ready to be a king, and my father knows it. I think he thinks if we get married, the kingdom will be better off if it's not just me running it. King Kingsley will still be around, and you're clearly much better at ruling than I am."

"What makes you say that? You've only just met me."

"We've long heard stories about Angeles, as I've already told you. My father really believes you will be a wise queen, Cinder."

Cinder fiddles with her pearl. She doesn't know what to believe anymore. She's not ready to rule a kingdom either, but Kai looks so sad that she doesn't have the heart to tell him that. And though she doesn't exactly love her father like she suspects many children do theirs, she doesn't wish him ill either. But mostly, she can't believe that she's been so worried about impressing Prince Kai when it seems like he's the one that feels the need to impress her.

And, it seems, as she feared before she met him — he clearly has no interest in her at all. This has, and always will be, a marriage of convenience. Kai's father is forcing Cinder on him just as much as her father is forcing Kai on her.

Though that was her reality yesterday, she doesn't like that it still her reality today. She ignores the swooping stomach sensation that's ever present, and says, "I'm very sorry about your father. My brother — Thorne — he's not sick like that, thankfully. I'm sorry if that was what I implied."

"It's okay," Kai said. "It was just nice to think we had something in common, you know? Besides being royalty."

"Cinder!"

Cinder nearly startles out of her skin at the familiar voice. And then, before she can even back away from Kai, her brother comes hurtling toward the coral reefs where she and Kai are floating, looking like a shark is chasing him in the seagrass meadow. There's something off about him besides his wide eyes. He looks somehow…disheveled. Sunburned. Not his usual self.

"Cinder, oh, thank the shells! Iko said you might be here. I've been looking everywhere for you! I had to find you before father found me. I need an excuse. A really good one. I've been thinking about it all the way back to the kingdom, and I've come up with nothing. _Me_! Who do you go to when you need a good excuse? _Me_! But I've got nothing, Cinder! Nothing! I've been gone for _days_!"

He pauses, his blue eyes frantic, his chest heaving. It's only then that he notices that Cinder is not alone — or, more precisely, that she is _with_ someone specific. His eyes bug for only a second as they focus on the pendant around Kai's neck. Then, whoever has possessed her twin's body leaves and suddenly Thorne is giving her his smug smile. "Wait a minute. What are you doing all the way out here? Alone?" He crosses his arms. "With none other than the Crown Prince of Common."

While Cinder tries to keep her composure, Kai bows a little awkwardly. "It's a pleasure to meet you. Prince Thorne, I assume?"

Thorne gives him a wink. "The pleasure is all mine, Your Majesticness."

Before either of them can say anything else, Cinder grabs her brother by the arm. "Excuse us, your Highness," she tells Kai.

She pulls Thorne to another coral reef, almost exactly where Thorne takes his mermaids. She tries to forget those images as she hisses, "Where the starfish have you been? Father is going to murder you and I won't be able to stop him!"

For a moment, Thorne looks panicked, like he did when he showed up in the seagrass meadow. "I know! I got tied up." Her eyes widen and he adds, "Not literally! I had to help Cress—I mean, the female."

"Cress? You learned her _name_?"

He looks wistful, but doesn't say anything.

"Thorne. Listen to me. You cannot tell father. We'll make something up—anything." Cinder rubs her temple. "Oh shells. You were with a human. A human. _A human_."

"They're not all bad."

She snaps her fingers in front of her twin's face. "Not all bad? They kill merpeople for sport!"

"They do not. Cress thought merpeople were _myths_."

"Thorne—"

"How's Prince Kai?" His lips twist into a teasing grin. "Must be going well if you've taken him all the way out here."

"No! He just wanted some privacy—"

"Those chocolatey-brown eyes." He pretends to swoon, like all the mermaids in court do for Thorne whenever he swims by. "Is he as heavenly as he looks, sis? Or is he a spoiled, arrogant prince?"

If she weren't so frustrated and flustered, Cinder might have told him that Prince Kai was exactly the opposite of spoiled and arrogant. But with him only a few reefs away and Thorne hanging out with _humans_ , there is no way she can get into that now. Besides, she doesn't need more of her brother's teasing. She's sure he knows how insecure she is, how she can never match up to someone like Kai, or even Thorne. It's moments like this where she wishes Thorne were born first. Perhaps then, he or Kai would be married off to Princess Winter, who wouldn't be a mediocre bride like her. Princess Winter is rumored to be the most beautiful mermaid in all the seas, after all.

After Queen Levana, of course.

"That's it," she says, though the thought does not give her much joy. "You'll stay with Kai and me today."

" _'Kai'_?"

"You'll stay with Kai and me throughout the day. That way when we run into father, he'll be mad, but he won't be able to…" She meets her brother's eyes, a mutual understanding passing between them. "To…act out."

Thorne's carefree grin is forced. "Right. And if he asks where I've been, we'll say…"

"That you met a mermaid from—"

"—Princess Winter's kingdom—"

"—who you're considering marrying."

"And that's why I had to be away for four days. But why didn't I make it back in time? Father will never buy that I'm _that_ in love." His eyes get a far-away look as he says it, but it vanishes just as quickly.

"Um," she says, thinking fast, "there are those riptides between the kingdoms. And you had to go around Levana's territory to get back. Love makes mermen do...irrational things."

Thorne gulps.

Cinder's eyes bug. "Thorne, what aren't you telling me?"

"Nothing. Thanks for helping me out. I don't want to be black and blue while our _esteemed guests_ are here."

"Kai is actually nice," she confesses.

Thorne smirks.

"Stop that."

"Sorry for missing his grand entrance, Cinder. I did try to get back as quickly as possible."

"At least you're back now and the female didn't kill you."

Thorne laughs. "Cress? She could barely eat a _fish_. She would never hurt a merman." He flexes a muscle. "Especially one like me."

"And that's enough male bravado for one morning."

She swims back over to Prince Kai, who is still hovering near the reef where she left him. The twinkle in his eye is gone. "Prince Thorne was never sick, was he?"

Her face falls. "I'm sorry. Father would have killed me if I'd told the truth."

"Literally," says Thorne, joining them. "And we wouldn't want you left with a dead bride, now would we?"

"Thorne—"

But her brother swims right in between Kai and her and drapes his arms around both their shoulders. "Now, if I'm not mistaken, the two of you will need a chaperone in these early stages of courtship. And as His Magesticness is here for a fortnight, I think we should be careful about breaking those rules too soon." He smirks at Kai. "Of course, if I'm your chaperone, I'll allow you to sneak off every now and then, but only once I've gotten to know you, buddy. This is, after all, my sister."

Cinder gasps at his informality towards Prince Kai and Thorne's suggestive implications, but when she dares glance at Kai, his neck is as red as his ears.

"And not just my sister," Thorne continues grandly, dragging them back into the seagrass meadow toward the rest of the garden and castle, "but my _twin._ "

Kai seems to recover, but only a little. "Of course, Prince Thorne. I never intended to—"

"One never does intend to do anything with a pretty mermaid, dear prince. These things just happen. Believe me, I'm on your side."

Cinder groans. "Thorne, stop this! Prince Kai and I were just admiring the erotic—oh _shells_ I mean _exotic! Exotic!—_ the exotic marine life that Angeles has imported from far away seas."

She can't look at either of her merman companions as Thorne bursts into laughter. She shrugs him off and swims faster to get ahead of them, then realizes it will show off her bad fin. She falls back instead, watching how stiff-backed Kai is in the presence of her brother, who swims jovially and regally but oh so casually in comparsion.

All she can think now is that she has ruined her chances of Prince Kai liking her even more now that he knows she lied to him. He already believes she lies about going out in forbidden waters. That sort of thing is understandable, she hopes, but Thorne not being sick? When Kai opened up about his father?

She hates that she wants Prince Kai to like her at all.

She has never wanted this marriage.

Still doesn't want it.

Of course not.


	7. Chapter 7

All Thorne can do is think of Cress.

He's only been away from her for less than a day, but seeing her pulled out of the water by a human man has been haunting him.

He almost didn't let her go. He has heard all the tales of sailors and how they treat their helpless female companions. And if this Sybil is after Cress, there is no telling who she will enlist in her evil plans. He knows how much a kingdom war can derange the minds of leaders and their followers.

And in the tales he has heard, sailors do not need an evil queen to take advantage of a female.

Cress had been so sure. "Leave me here, Thorne," she'd said. "They will see me. They will help me get home to Satellite."

So Thorne had let her go. He had let her drape her legs over his shoulders while he kept her afloat from underneath the surface. Cress waved her arms about, calling for help and pretending to be kicking in the rough waters. When the ship was close enough, she had run her fingers through his hair, a silent sign to let go. He had hesitated, and she had brushed her fingers over his cheek — a final goodbye.

He had taken those pruney, frail human fingers and pressed them to his lips — his final goodbye.

Then she had really had to kick to stay Above. Cress struggled in the Sea Witch's territory, for Levana enjoyed making her waters more agitated for any passengers who might come by. Then he had watched, from far enough below that no one could detect him but he could still save her if she needed it, as the ship had thrown some sort of bobbing device attached to a rope at Cress.

The princess had swum with all her might, and Thorne had nearly gone back up to the surface. But she had reached it, and then Thorne had watched a man hoist her up and up and up. He had gone closer to the surface then, in case the male sailor tried anything untoward, but she had disappeared over the deck too quickly.

And then they were leaving, passing over him as though he were an inconsequential wave.

Before he could watch the ship disappear over the horizon, he took off. Cress's fate was in her own hands now, and he had to get out of Levana's territory.

"Sea to Thorne!" Cinder snaps her fingers in front of his face. "Father is on his way. Straighten your back. Let me do as much of the talking as possible."

Next to her, Prince Kai also straightens his back. Thorne hasn't quite figured him out yet, though his initial impression is that he's rather regal and impressive — exactly the way King Kingsley wishes Thorne would be. But Thorne has been watching the Prince of Common as much as he's been watching his sister throughout the day, and he's fairly convinced that Prince Kai has already developed a soft spot for Cinder.

He can't wait to tease her about her own crush when they finally have some time alone.

He scratches at his neck. Should he tell Cinder more about Cress? She doesn't seem open about humans, though, admittedly, he's never been open to them either until he met one.

"Good morning, Prince Thorne, Your Highness." A mermaid from court by the name of Elia dips her head in front of him, then does the same to Prince Kai and Cinder. "Your Royal Highnesses."

Thorne nods politely. Elia was in school with him, and she's long been interested in earning his affection. Most mermaids in court are quite obvious about their intentions with him, even if he always avoids talking about his own.

"Prince Thorne," she continues, "might I have an audience with you in private?"

Cinder coughs.

"We're about to meet with the King," Thorne says.

"It'll only be a minute," Elia says.

"Go on, Thorne," Cinder says, her voice dripping with over-exaggerated sweetness. "Elia has eagerly been awaiting your return. I'm sure you can spare her just one moment of your time."

Thorne shoots daggers at his sister with his eyes as Elia swoons. "Of course, Your Highness, it'll only be a minute."

Thorne reluctantly swims to the side, with Elia at his tail. He stops behind one of the pillars in the courtyard, where Cinder won't be able to read their lips. He can already see her whispering about him to Prince Kai, who wears a knowing smirk on his face.

"Yes, Elia?" Thorne asks, crossing his arms over his chest.

"Your Highness, I only wanted to tell you that I had a wonderful time with you on our date."

"Our date?" He tries to get Cress out of his mind. "Oh! Our date. Of course. I had a wonderful time as well."

She beams. He gives her a cocky smile.

"There's a party tomorrow at Belshire Cove. It's invite only, and I wanted to invite you." She laughs, a little too deliriously. "Not that you would need an invitation to go anywhere in the merkingdom, Your Highness, of course."

"I would never show up at a party where I wasn't welcome," he says, but only because he's trying to think of how he can get out of this. Elia's cute, and she's from a well-known merfamily. Thorne doesn't exactly remember their date, though. They went on a swim to look for seashells. Did that count as a date? He hadn't even kissed her.

His mind goes to Cress again, and her body pressed against him for hours on end. Is she safe? Is she home? Is she still wearing her tattered blue dress? Has she forgotten him already?

"Does that mean you'll come?" Elia says with a flutter of her eyelashes.

"I would absolutely love to," Thorne says, then puts on his best pout. "But with the royalty from Common here, I'm afraid I'm already occupied. You see, they're in need of a chaperone. You understand, I'm sure."

Her eyes widen. "Of course, of course. Do you think we should get a chaperone for the next time we go on a swim?"

"I like to do things my own way, darlin'," Thorne says, shooting her a wink that hopefully looks less half-hearted than he feels.

This is his life. He isn't in some fantasy land where he can meet Cress in secret coves. He lives in the sea. He is a prince. The mermaids in the three merkingdoms are his reality. He will have to choose one of them eventually. So he might as well flirt with Elia if he wants to.

The fact that he doesn't want to, not at all, is what weighs him down.

He leaves her there and swims back to Cinder and Prince Kai before she can say anything else or suggest more dates. "Don't even bring it up," he mutters to Cinder.

The trumpets that announce their father's arrival make both of them forget about Elia. Thorne straightens up, his clenched fist behind his back.

"Thorne!" his father bellows, then stops short when he sees Cinder and Prince Kai. His father's face settles into a polite mask. "Son," he says, more calmly now, "I take it you are feeling better?"

His eyes say that Thorne is in for the biggest beating of his life. Thorne tries not to squirm. "Yes, thank you for your concern, Your Majesty. I am finally back on my fin."

His father's eyes narrow but then turn to Prince Kai. "Your Highness! How wonderful to see you out and about with my daughter. I take it she is showing you only the best of the best in Angeles?"

Prince Kai nods. "The princess has been a most hospitable guide. Prince Thorne, as well, has taken the day to accompany us."

"Has he, now?" His father's pleasant stare turns into a masked promise of pain when he regards Thorne again. "I'm so pleased to hear that."

"Yes," Cinder says, a little too excitedly, "Thorne has been with us the whole day."

Trumpets blare, and everyone jumps. It is not a trumpet welcoming royalty, or one of a special visitor. It is a warning sound. There is danger.

The court scatters, and so many bubbles fill the room from panicked fins that Thorne cannot even see to the end of the courtyard. The royal guard is around them in an instant, surrounding them like a school of fish hovering over prey.

A red-haired mermaid who Thorne has become friends with while on the guard bows in front of the king. "Your Majesty, there is news from our borders. The Sea Witch requests an audience with you."

Prince Kai inhales sharply. Cinder gasps.

A horrible cold clutches at Thorne's lungs.

The Sea Witch is here.

King Kingsley grips his trident as if he will crush it in his bare hand. "She has crossed into our territory?"

"No," Scarlet says, still bowing, "she waits with her guard right at the edge of the kingdom. She says that there is something important to discuss. She says that you must meet her, Your Majesty, or she will attack."

Before King Kingsley can even respond, Prince Kai has called for his own bodyguard, who is never more than a few strokes away. "Fetch Father," he says to him, "and the rest of our guard. We will follow whatever orders King Kingsley gives."

Looking appeased, King Kingsley nods at Scarlet. "Send message that we will meet her. But if she crosses into my kingdom, we will kill her on sight."

Scarlet bows more deeply and sends half the guard ahead of them. The rest of them stay with Cinder, Thorne, Prince Kai, and King Kingsley.

"Cinder," says their father, "you will stay here, at the palace. I don't know what tricks Levana has up her fins being here, but I will not risk the future of my kingdom. Prince Kai, you will also stay here. It is not good for the Sea Witch to know you are visiting us."

"But what about Thorne?" Cinder says.

"He will one day be the captain of my guard," he says, not even looking at Thorne. "So he will come with me, along with the rest of the guard."

Thorne's tail feels like it is covered in barnacles. They are stuck to him, weighing him down, making his movement sloppy. He swims forward anyway, claiming his place in the guard. Scarlet hands him his spear.

He sends a small smile to Cinder over his shoulder. He can guess why Levana has come, but he'd rather his sister remember him confident. She waves, but she's not that confident, and Kai is at her side, looking like he wants to grab her hand in comfort.

Then the movement of the guard sweeps him up and he can't see anything but the formation in front of him, can't hear anything but his father yelling out orders and the swish of tails.

It takes a long time to get to the end of Angeles, but it's not long enough for Thorne. He wonders what it'll feel like to die, and whether Levana will take her time.

Because if Thorne knows one thing, it's that his father won't sacrifice his fragile peace with Levana for the son he has always resented.

Still, in the few moments they have to approach Levana, Thorne imagines that he really is the captain of the guard – a prince with honor, not a disappointment.

All thoughts shatter as Levana and her own guard come into view.

They have formed a line around their kingdom, with her in the middle. He only knows it's Levana because she is the only female among male soldiers. But that is not all: she is the only merperson. The soldiers around her are grotesque, misshaped…beasts.

They snarl at the approaching Angeles soldiers, their teeth as large as some of the worst sharks he has been chased by. Thorne nearly doubles back when he puts it all together—they are half-shark, half merperson. There are extra gills across their faces and ribs, and they have are gray, massive tails.

Levana has used her magic to deform them.

It is enough to make him want to flee, but Thorne merely curls his lip.

Next to him, Scarlet gasps. "Ze'ev," she cries out, then claps a hand over her mouth.

Thorne's eyes dart around the soldiers. He remembers a muscled merman by the name of Ze'ev, remembers Scarlet sneaking off with him after training.

They'd broken it off, he assumed.

His hands tighten around his spear when he finds the face—but no longer the body—of her former lover. He is near the queen.

The queen, who is more beautiful than all the paintings inside of their history books.

"Steady, Scarlet," he whispers. "Don't let her know."

King Kingsley halts his guard. The shark-mermen hybrids bare their teeth.

Queen Levana smiles. "Dear Kingsley, it has been far too long."

"You are in danger of trespassing, Levana," he snaps. He holds his trident out like it can repel her wicked magic—everyone knows it can't.

"I'm still over the line, am I not, old friend?" She wiggles her hips seductively, moves an inch closer.

The Angeles guard raise their spears. Thorne swallows hard.

"The treaty states that I don't come into your territory, Kingsley, and you don't come into mine. Do I take this to mean that you no longer wish for peace?"

Thorne's heart plunges into his tail. _Shells._

His father balks. "You dare accuse me of trespassing? I will not stand for such fiction."

Her lips twist into a pleased grin. "Not you, old friend." Her eyes search the ranks of the guard. "Your son."

"My son?" Kingsley barks. "Preposterous!"

Levana raises her hand at the soldier next to her. He swims closer to the border as well, with her at his side. "There is a simple magic to reveal the truth, if you will allow me to perform it."

Thorne breaths out. Meets his father's eyes. Death is one thing. Simple magic by a witch is another thing entirely. Nothing is ever simple with Levana. He has lost, and he won't risk his kingdom for his own life, even if father would never believe it of him.

"No magic is necessary, Your Majesty," Thorne says officially to his father. He swims forward, out of rank, before his father can even register his words. Thorne doesn't want to see his disappointment yet again. "I admit I was in your territory, Your Majesty, Queen Levana. I beg your forgiveness." He bows low, deep—the bowing of a servant, not a prince.

She smirks. "If only it were that simple."

She snaps her fingers, and before he can even move, his spear is gone and two of Levana's soldiers have dragged him over the Angeles border and hold him prone. His shoulders nearly rip out of his sockets. "Not so hard, eh boys?" he says to his captors. "I could probably use my arms."

Scarlet cries, "Ze'ev, no!"

No one comes to his rescue.

"Give him back."

Thorne looks up through his grimace, and sees his father come near the border. For a moment, hope fills his heart. He was wrong. His father does love him.

"He is only a boy," says his father, not looking at Thorne. "A stupid boy, but still a child, by our standards. He is not yet twenty."

"A prince who does not abide by his own father's treaty? Dear Kingsley, I cannot believe his intentions were innocent. You see, he not only entered my territory unlawfully, but he did so accompanying a human."

Most of the guard gasps, and Kingsley is barely able to hold back his own. His eyes narrow, and he finally regards Thorne. His mouth barely moves. Thorne sees the unbridled rage in his eyes. "A human?"

"She was dying," Thorne says. "I showed her mercy. It's more than you would have done."

"You know it is forbidden!" his father hisses.

"She was dying," he repeats. Cress's pale, cold body at the bottom of the sea reminds him that he did the right thing when he contrasts it with her glee at swimming with him, alive and well.

"You should have let her die!"

"Indeed," says Queen Levana. "The souls of humans are _mine_."

"She doesn't belong to you," Thorne spits out.

"He clearly doesn't know what he's saying!" Kingsley tells Levana. "He must have been bitten by an urchin. He must be ill!"

Levana sighs heavily. Comes over to inspect Thorne. She runs a finger over Thorne's cheek, where Cress's finger had been only a day ago. He flinches back, but she grabs his entire face with her nails. "Such a waste," she says, then slaps him.

Thorne barely moves; he is used to being slapped. And those of the Sea Witch do not affect him like the ones he has received before.

"I am a merciful queen, old friend," she says, swimming back to the border.

"Then you see," says Kingsley, "that he is clearly ill?"

"Perhaps," she says. "The penalty for trespassing into my territory is death."

Thorne closes his eyes for a moment. He knew this was his fate the second she arrived.

"And our treaty should be void," she continues.

"Levana—"

She holds up her hand. "But, being the merciful queen I am, I shall not kill him, and I shall not break our treaty—seeing as it was only a foolish child."

"You're letting me go?" says Thorne.

"No." She swims over to him. "It has been a long time since we've had any visits by royalty in my lonely little kingdom." She trails her finger over his cheeks again. Her red lips curl into a the most enthralling smile he has ever seen, and for a moment, he is mesmerized by her beauty.

Levana stabs her fingers into his eyes. He screams, but he cannot get away. The beast soldiers hold him back, keep him from getting away. The pain that lances through him is unbearable. He blacks out.

When he comes to, he is still being held upright. His eyes burn and—

"I can't see! Shells, I can't see!"

He hears the cruel, mocking laughter of the soldiers.

"Father!" he calls. "Where are you?"

"I'm still here."

Thorne looks around, but everything is black, black, black.

"She took my eyes!" he yells, thrashing against the soldiers. It is futile.

"We have come to an agreement," says his father. His voice is steady. "The queen will uphold our treaty."

"In exchange for my eyes?" Thorne says, his pulse racing, his eyes still burning, burning, burning.

"In exchange for you."

Levana laughs next to him. "I've always wanted a prince for my collection."

"Collection?" Thorne gasps out. He is in so much pain he can barely speak. His shoulders are dislocating, his eyes are on fire, and he still cannot see. "Father!"

"I agree to your terms, Levana," says King Kingsley. "Thank you for understanding."

"THORNE!"

Thorne moves his head around wildly, dizziness overtaking him. "Cinder! Help!"

"Cinder, stay back!" Kingsley barks. "Guards, restrain her!"

"Ah, Princess Cinder," says Levana, and Thorne can hear the revulsion in her voice. "And Prince Kai!" Her tone clips upward. "My beautiful boy, what a pleasant surprise."

"Your Majesty," Prince Kai says curtly.

"Leave Thorne alone!" Cinder cries.

"Quiet!" Kingsley roars. "No one is to cross the border. This meeting is over!"

"Sis…," says Thorne. "When I come back, I'll help you pick out your tiara for His Magesticness."

His eyes hurt so bad, he goes limp in the arms of the soldiers. They don't expect it and nearly crush his bones.

"You're not coming back," Levana snaps, and with another slap to his face, Thorne blacks out for good.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WELL. Y'all wished for the longer version of this story. *grins evilly* Also, I must give credit where credit is due. Moon-Mirage (SecretInk on FFN--check out her stories, they are Cresswell gold and I beta them) casually mentioned the idea of Levana creating shark hybrids when I brought up the idea for Stars Below, so you can blame her for those! *blows kisses at M-M* (Also, for those wondering, YES, Cress will be back - soon! More Kaider and Cresswell coming up!)


	8. Chapter 8

The pain in Thorne's eyes doesn't subside, nor does the overwhelming headache. It's like someone beat him on the back of his head with blunt clubs while he slept. Every time he moves, turns his head, tries to force his eyelids open on the off chance it'll make his sight return, he feels like passing out again.

He doesn't pass out. Maybe his body can only handle a certain amount of shock in a day, and now it's content to let him suffer while awake.

He has no idea where he is. With nothing but black sea no matter how hard he tries to regain his sight he knows he could be anywhere. He's tried swimming forward but he runs into metal bars. The bars are there when he swims backward, sideways, diagonally. It's a cage of some sort.

A cage in the middle of nowhere perhaps.

Will Levana leave him here without food until he starves to death? Is she putting him in some sort of arena with sharks — or maybe even her hybrids — and waiting to open the cage until they're ready to eat him alive? Or is this already part of her 'collection'? And if it is, why is no one else around?

He sinks into the sand at the bottom of the cage, pressing his hands to his head. Sometimes, if he squeezes hard enough, the pressure subsides — but only just a bit. He holds onto his head until his biceps and triceps are so sore he can barely lift them.

At least the sand is familiar. He searches all along his cage for any food that might be crawling around within it. Bottom feeders, fish that are too stupid to not swim into a cage with a merman, oysters — anything.

But there is nothing and no one and Thorne is completely alone.

* * *

"Good morning, young prince."

A lilting voice wakes Thorne. He bolts upright, hands in front of him like he can defend himself from the Sea Witch who has already taken everything from him. In his movement, there is a burst of white light in front of his eyes and, for a moment, his spirits soar. His sight is returning! But it settles into darkness and Thorne does everything in his power to hide his disappointment.

"What's this? No greeting for your queen?"

Thorne spits. "I will never bow to any queen but Cinder."

"You will never see your sister again, so be wise with your words, Prince Thorne."

"Your words hold no power, Sea Witch. You have already taken everything. What more is there to lose? My life? Take it, by all means."

Though he can't see, he can still hear, and Levana is moving around his cage. There are other creatures with her. The hybrids, he assumes. He doesn't know what other foul beasts live in her kingdom and maybe ignorance is best for now.

She clucks her tongue but her voice is still saccharine. "Me? Kill a merman?" She laughs. "I have better things to do with my time."

"Like turning them into beasts?"

Her laugh turns almost hysterical and Thorne curls his lip.

"Would you like to join their ranks, Prince Thorne?"

He hasn't considered this before and the idea shoots a bolt of terror through his spine. Still, he shrugs lazily. "I've always thought shark fins would make me faster. So why not?"

"Yes, why not?" she titters.

"We don't want a weakling like him with us, Your Majesty," says a rough, masculine voice.

"Only for dinner," says another one.

So the hybrids are with her, then. Thorne makes sure to stay in the middle of his cage. Pride or not, he doesn't want to risk a finger or a tail.

"Not to worry, my pets," says Levana, "that shall not be his fate, though I admit it is tempting. No, I have other plans for our young prince."

"Like keeping me in your collection?" Thorne says. He still doesn't know exactly what her collection is, but he assumes it involves staying in his cage for the rest of his life until old age or lunacy claim him. "I must admit, you won't find a more handsome merman in all the seas. It's going to be quite the ego boost for me. Though, if I may, I find it highly disturbing that a mermaid of your old age would need to gawk at someone as young as me. Did all the old mermen turn you down? Did they find you've become a little wrinkly around the eyes too?" He laughs like he's teasing his sister. "Or were my eyes deceiving me already before you took them?"

The cage rattles. "I am not going wrinkly around the eyes!"

The stories about her vanity are true, then. He can work with this. "So you are simply just…ill? Perverted? Unaware of how old you are?"

The hybrids growl as Thorne hears Levana suck water through her teeth.

"That is not what my collection is about," she says. Thorne can hear rage in her voice now and it gives him such satisfaction to know he can rile her up even in his current state.

"Enlighten me, then."

"It is not for you to be enlightened about what a queen does in her own kingdom, prince."

"You said you were going to be my new queen. A subject has the right to know what the royal family is up to, don't you think?"

"Silence!"

Thorne smirks.

"I have changed my mind about your punishment. You are not suitable for my collection, after all. And, being the merciful queen that I am, my punishments always match the offense."

" _Shells_ , what exactly is your problem? What real offense was there? I was in your territory for a matter of minutes. I came peacefully and left almost immediately. I stayed Above the entire time."

"You aided a human. For _days_."

"So we can add stalking to the list of creepy things you do."

"It does not matter if you were Above or below. You are my enemy and you are not welcome in my territory. Do you think your father would show mercy to any of my citizens should they cross into his kingdom? No, he would have anyone executed on sight."

"Do you even have citizens? Or just pets?"

"Silence! You are too young and foolish to understand the politics of monarchs. Trespassing into my kingdom was a grave offense but aiding the human was far worse. Her soul was mine and you stole it from me. Therefore, I shall have your soul instead."

Ah. There it is. She _is_ going to kill him. "Well, that certainly doesn't sound pleasant. But let's get on with it, then, shall we? I'm sure death is more pleasant than a conversation with you."

Maybe death would take away the pain in his eyes too.

"Open the cage," Levana says.

Thorne stiffens and holds his hands up defensively. He aches for his spear, though it certainly didn't do him much good the first time. He's usually quite good with it, and he suspects that magic was in play when they stole it from him. Something rattles and Thorne turns his head around but can't figure out exactly what's happening. He wishes he knew where they were.

"You may swim out."

Thorne gulps.

Then he swims forward with all his might. Levana may be set on killing him but he can still try to get away with dignity in his last moments. He will not bob here like a complacent fool.

He crashes into something with a yelp and soon the familiar grip of the hybrids sharks are on him.

Levana laughs. "No, my pets. Let him go. We shall see how long he makes it. We shall make a sport of it. How long can the blind human remain underwater before his soul becomes mine?"

Thorne's lungs turn cold at her words. It's like he has an inkling of an idea of what she has planned, but he is so busy getting away from the hybrids that he doesn't really grasp their meaning. He is flying through the water but he is so unsure about where he's going after having crashed into something earlier. He swims upward — at least, he thinks it's upward — because there should be less life in the sea the closer he goes to the surface. But dread washes over him at that thought too. Whenever he's gone close to the surface, he always has his sight. He knows how far away Levana's kingdom is and is careful to avoid detection from ships.

He doesn't make it very far before something painful shoots through his body.

It is the sharp sting of a sea urchin zinging all through his body at once. It is the electrocution of ten eels and his tail is alight but he has run into _nothing_ and _no one_ is around him and everything is zap —

Zap —

Zapping.

He screams but he is stuck where he is, unable to swim forward, unable to move his tail.

The pain vanishes as quickly as it came and Thorne's body loses its rigidity. He kicks forward at the same time that he realizes he is kicking forward.

Kicking.

With legs.

Levana's shrill laugh comes second later, distant.

And it's then that he realizes what is happening.

_"How long can the blind human remain underwater before his soul becomes mine?"_

This is his punishment. Not death by a shark's teeth. Not a cage for the rest of his life. Not transformation into a hybrid. No, he has become something much worse.

Levana has turned him into a human.

"No!" he yells, ready to barter, to plead, to beg, to pledge allegiance. But the second he opens his mouth, water rushes in and a new pain overcomes him. He can no longer breathe. His lungs are burning. His nose is stinging.

He is drowning.

This is how she will claim him. He will drown the way that Cress was supposed to and Levana will have the soul she claims he stole.

He kicks feebly, the sensation strange and his legs no match for a powerful tail with fins. They are useless against the mighty sea and he is thrown to the side by the current he once zipped over.

Thorne shuts his mouth and hold his breath but his lungs are already full. It is only a matter of seconds before he will die just like the many sailors he has watched over the years. He knows exactly how this goes.

The sea is also suddenly heavy; it pushes on him and against him, as though Sybil's chest were tied to him this time, wanting to drag him to the floor of the sea. His ears plug up with water and he can't hear anymore. Is this how it happens? Does the sea claim every sense before it swallows you whole?

Still, he kicks, his newly discovered muscles — or lack thereof — working as hard as they can to propel him upward. But the pain is too great and he is too weak.

Maybe there is even a vortex that he can't see.

There is a tug at his waist. Rough arms grab him. He thrashes against the gilled body that is on him.

One of her hybrids.

But then he is being propelled upward at a rate that no human could ever accomplish. It is a speed that not even he nor Cinder could accomplish during one of their races. The hybrid is going to devour him any second, he sure of it, but he is beginning to lose consciousness. He has no strength left. The weight of the water is too great and the burning in his lungs too powerful.

They break above the surface.

"Open your mouth, Thorne," a voice growls. "Breathe!"

Webbed fingers force his lips to part. He gasps and water surges through his lungs, his nose, his mouth. But it is finally moving in the right direction as he coughs and gags and spits it all out.

"I can't take you any farther," says the hybrid. "Levana will have my head for this."

Thorne can't speak. He is still gagging and coughing and trying to make sense of what is happening. The hybrid is holding him upward and as Thorne moves his new legs he can feel the spikey shark tale hitting his feet from time to time.

"You are almost out of her territory here. She expects you to drown any minute. When she finds you have not, she will come for you. We will come for you. And I will not be able to help you then. She has an evil magic, Levana, and you should consider yourself lucky to have escaped my fate."

"I—" Thorne gasps, but he feels like he will pass out again.

A clap of thunder rolls through the sky.

"Swim, Prince Thorne," the hybrid commands. There is an island in this direction." He holds Thorne's arm out to his right. "If you can make it there, perhaps the humans can help you."

He lets go of Thorne and Thorne slips into the water helplessly.

He kicks his way back up to the surface and forces in a breath when he breaks through.

"If you ever see her again, tell Scarlet I didn't want this."

There's a splash and Thorne grasps all around him for support but the hybrid is gone. Before Thorne can ponder his words and think about the people in his guard he is swimming in the direction that the hybrid pointed. Only he doesn't know if he is really going in the right direction at all. He swims aimlessly but frantically. The only thing that keeps him going is the thought of Levana and her army right behind him and that any second they will bite off his new feet as he kicks into the water.

He hears the thunder over him. The waves bite his face, sting his skin. He has never needed his arms to swim before, but he is thankful that he has made them strong if more for vanity than for usefulness. They work harder than his legs, which still feel like goops of foreign sand underneath him.

The sea claims his body after a time and he lets go. He cannot fight it any longer. It throws him forward, back, up, and down. The water he once loved is a monster worse than the Sea Witch.

He is dragged under, spit out, turned upside down.

The sea slams him into something hard. Something that cuts into him and makes him cry out and swallow more water. He holds on to it though with all his might – something hard is better than something only made of water. He grips and claws until he recognizes the stony cups of limestone that make up the skeleton of the polyps. He remembers how they scream whenever the unknown come too close, but he can hear nothing now and he doesn't care if he hurts them because they are hurting him.

The reef is skinning him alive.

Thorne grunts and holds onto several polyps that have already formed a coral colony and pulls himself up. He is above the water now from the waist up, and here the water still roars and crashes against him but he is no longer swimming at least.

He is Above.

More than he ever has been. And as long as he stays right here, he cannot drown.

He gulps for air. The coral colony spikes into his legs, his feet, and everywhere below his waist. Thorne splays his hands behind him and braces against the water which is so ready to drag him under again.

He has no idea what he's supposed to do next or how to reconcile this new circumstance but he is _alive_.

The Sea Witch tried to kill him and he is alive.

His soul is not yet hers.

Thorne lets out a ragged laugh of victory, then convulses into a fit of coughing.


	9. Chapter 9

Waking up as a human is worse than falling asleep as one.

His flesh burns like it never has before, and everything—including his legs, he reminds himself—aches as though he has carried boulders around for days. He has always considered himself fit, but it's like he has never known his muscles before this.

He hates the sea. It is misleading, calling to him like an old friend, but whenever he dips his legs the salt burns his ripped flesh. The sea tries to claim him, like it claims all humans, like it knows he doesn't belong.

The Sea Witch has surely told it to find him.

His lips are cracked and almost sewn shut. He is badly burned, he can feel it, and he needs food. He listens for fish but hears only waves. He crawls around on his coral, trying to find anything from their colonies that isn't protected by hard shell, but they have all run away from him, it seems. He reaches under the coral, nearly falling into the sea, and finds a piece of seaweed, at least. He chews on the blade, wishing they were in chip form instead of this raw disgustingness.

Two suns set and rise. He goes in and out of consciousness, wondering how long it will take before the sun claims him instead of the sea.

* * *

When he wakes up, he doesn't feel the stabbing claws of the coral reef below him. He is rocking, as though he is resting in a hammock outside his quarters. It must be a dream. His body is so ruined that it does not even register reality anymore. Fine with him. Death will be easier.

Something pokes him. A stick?

He flinches and curls to his side. He is unsure of how humans manage to sleep without water around them, but for now he is more comfortable than he has ever been since he became one. He will not be bothered.

"I think he's alive," says a female voice and, for a second, Thorne's dream includes Cress. Not a bad way to die, he decides. Not bad at all.

The prodding on his back increases to the point of annoyance.

"Wake up," the voice commands. It is decidedly not Cress.

"Am I alive?" he croaks. He doesn't recognize his own voice.

"Barely," she says. "Bring him some water, boys, so he can speak."

Thorne groans. "No water. Get it away from me."

"You are dying of dehydration, boy." It takes Thorne a moment to realize that he is the boy. "You'll drink or you'll die."

"Too…salty."

"He's hallucinating," she comments, and someone mutters something in response. "Hold his mouth open."

Thorne doesn't have the energy to struggle—he doesn't even have the energy to lift his head. Someone with sharp nails yanks on his jaw and water trickles onto his tongue. He splutters and chokes as they force his lips to close, but once it hits his throat he wants more. This is somehow not to the water of the sea that he has known all his life. It is cool and refreshing and bathing his parched mouth and something like a moan escapes his lips. "More," he says.

When he is done drinking, he thanks them. "Who are you? Where am I?"

"Is it not obvious?" says the female voice.

He tries to point at his face but his muscles are too weak. "Blind," he says. Then, because he suddenly feels vulnerable and that is such a foreign feeling, he adds, "Shipwreck. Sharp rocks."

"Blind and useless. What a shame. We might as well throw him back overboard."

Back overboard? Does that mean…

"Am I on a ship?"

"A ship, he says. I am Captain Jina of the Farafrah Pirates. Are you aware of your situation now?"

Pirates! How fascinating. He has a second cousin who is a siren, and the few times he's met her she has spoken of the way she has lulled pirates to their death. Her stories about how they grow drunk on her song are almost as entertaining as the ones that Cinder and Thorne share after their gambling episodes. (It's ridiculous, really. Growing drunk on song? The pirates should spend more time at Karaoke sandbars so they are not so shocked by a voice!)

His heart grows a little heavier at the thought of his sister and he pushes the thought away. What else does he know about pirates? Among humans, they are some of the most selfish, he has heard. But he has heard a lot of things about humans that Cress proved were all wrong, so perhaps he really knows nothing.

Knowing nothing is not something he can use to his advantage.

How infuriating.

And yet, she sounds so arrogant, he is sure this is one thing he can use.

"Ah," he says, "Captain Jina. I've heard of you."

Everyone laughs.

"Why did you save me?" he asks.

"We're not in the business of saving anyone. We're interested in all cargo: treasure and human alike. There's nothing that can't be sold among the Twelve Seas."

There is only one sea, this Thorne is sure of, but he's not about to argue with "Captain" Jina. So they plan to sell him…barbaric, these humans, but what else is new?

"I'm afraid you picked me up at a bad time," he says, trying to sound nonchalant when his throat still rubs like sand. "Princess Cress of Satellite is expecting me. She would appreciate your cooperation, I'm sure."

Captain Jina snickers. "Nils, this boy thinks he knows Princess Cress of Satellite."

"Maybe he's smitten with the royal little wench," says a man—Nils?—then laughs as though Thorne is the stupidest human he's ever met.

But at least he knows of her. Cress said there were many kingdoms. Perhaps hers is not far. How can he get to her? Surely she will help him. She will take one look at his legs and understand his predicament.

He _could_ claim to be her suitor, yes—but Nils clearly thinks this is ridiculous. If they were merpeople, perhaps he could talk his way out of this, but what does he know of the kingdoms of humans? What are their qualifications for suitors—and for a princess as beautiful as Cress, too? His looks are coveted as a merman, but is he considered good-looking enough among men to claim such a title? Perhaps it is his eyes that have ruined his look. They were dreamy, he was always told, but now they feel glued shut by scars.

If they prod deeper, they will learn he has no money, no contacts. Even he can't lie his way through names of humans he's never heard of. And why would a princess await a blind man with no money nor clothes? His own life as royalty is evidence of his own of his fabled tale. He racks his brain for anything he can use from the history books the merpeople took from ancient shipwrecks. From the textbook at school he barely skimmed: Humans Through the Ages.

"Actually," he says, "I was to be her concubine."

A strong silence follows his words and he wishes more than ever that he could see. He is not only blind to sight, but his inability to read the expressions of those around him blinds him too. Did he get it wrong? Concubines were always prominent among human royalty, weren't they? Some of them even had more than one.

"A male concubine?" says a gruff voice—not the woman, not Nils. "Ain't no such thing."

 _Shells_. He's mixed things up already. What does a concubine even do? He can't remember. And why are females only allowed to be them? That seems sexist. Cinder would not approve.

"Do you not know that Princess Cress is different from all the rulers that you have met? She does not believe in sexist stereotypes. And besides, I was to serve other purposes too."

What he hopes is that they'll give away those purposes in their confusion…so he can make up something new.

"Like a slave?"

"Yes!" He remembers those more clearly from the textbooks too. A slave is even better. A slave he understands.

"You were being sold to Princess Cress of Satellite?"

"As her personal slave. She's quite picky."

Someone snorts.

"I and one other were to be sold, as we were part of her…special cargo. But the other perished in the wreck, so I'm sure she'd pay a pretty sandollar—I mean, coin—for me. I am the best concubine...slave...in these parts."

She laughs, like she is mocking him. "Perhaps we shall keep you on our ship then. We could use a slave to do our work for us. And perhaps some will find use of your other talents as well."

The rest of her crew laughs.

"Very well," he says. "I have no loyalty to anyone." Then as an off-handed, casual follow-up, he adds, "Saves Princess Cress all her money, I suppose."

There is more silence, then some murmuring among the pirates.

"Do you know how much money she bought you for?"

He thinks. A slave probably wouldn't have access to that kind of information. "All I know is that I was sold as the highest commodity at the—" Hmm…

"The auction?"

"Yes, the auction." Whatever that is. But he is cargo to them, and as a prince he's witnessed enough import and export to understand the rules. "My owner was to receive Princess Cress's payment upon my safe transfer to her kingdom. I'm sure that she would honor that agreement with whoever completes that transaction. My owner said she was most persistent."

"And why would you, a slave, be interested in being united with your new master?"

Ah, fair point. He has not thought this through. "This shipwreck experience has shown me that I have no real love of the sea. I would rather be on land."

He fears he has given too much away about himself, and before anyone says anything else, they throw him into a place with bars like the one the Sea Witch had.

* * *

Legs are impossible, and maybe he has an ounce more sympathy for humans at sea. With the way the ship rocks and turns, Thorne can barely right himself, even if he uses the bars to pull himself up. His muscles are so weak from trying to survive at sea that he feels like he is made of mussel rather than muscle.

He lies on the wooden floor for most of their trip, and minutes pass into hours pass into days. He receives water and food—something that tastes about as dank as his cell smells—but he accepts sustenance he doesn't like for once in his life. His skin is still charred but at least he is staying conscious for longer periods of time.

The over-boiled shrimp at his father's palace sound like luxury now.

* * *

Thorne's dreams come mixed with nightmares. Sometimes he's with Cinder, and he wakes up wondering what his twin is doing at that very moment. If they all think he's dead. Sometimes he's with Cress, and their moments together wake him with warmed, flushed skin that is not from the sun. Sometimes he's back in front of Levana, and his eyes are stabbed out repeatedly. His flesh is torn by Ze'ev.

Ze'ev, who saved him.

Is this being saved? To go from one cell to another?

He has breath in his lungs.

He won't think about the rest now.

* * *

Is it possible to become sick from the sea while above it? The unsteady rocking of the ship makes his stomach turn inside out. Most of his meals come back up. The amount of space grows infinitely smaller with each lurch of his insides.

What is this misery? What is human life?

* * *

Something crawls over his leg and Thorne retracts his new legs so fast he smacks into the bars. He can hear it scurrying around. Thorne is used to the noises of the sea, with its waves breaking against the ship, the seagulls croaking, and the occasional clap of thunder. This thing—this little disgusting animal _thing_ —makes sounds he's never heard before, like a clicking or a humming. Whenever it touches Thorne his flesh erupts into a sweaty chill and he wants to crawl out of his skin. He wants to catch it with his hands so he can kill it but that would require actually touching it.

* * *

Whenever a pirate comes to his cell, he tries to start up a conversation.

Everyone ignores him.

* * *

"Get up."

Thorne blinks awake. One of his eyelids opens now, but he still sees only black. That gruff voice from his first moment on the ship is there. Thorne listens and hears more footsteps. Sounds he wouldn't have recognized if he hadn't memorized Cress's every move on the beach. These are not little squishy pitter-patters against damp sand, though. They are clumsy thuds, perhaps with the clothing they wear to protect their feet—boots?

He should have paid more attention in human history class.

Should have asked Cress more questions.

"I said, get up."

"I can't."

There's a moment of silence. Some clanging.

"Ye'll do what yer told, slave."

Oh, if only they knew his real title. He would have them scrubbing the floors of their disgusting ship. Filthy pirates.

"My legs—they're too weak," he admits. He can't tell them he has never walked before this, and though he's tried to practice in his cell, there's nowhere to do that with all the vomit cluttered around him. He can't even turn in one direction without the stench overwhelming his nostrils

"Yer pathetic, that's what ye are."

"Thanks for that stellar vote of confidence," he says, then clamps his jaw shut. This is not a time to talk back. He is not a prince here. He needs to get to Cress. "Please, can you help me?"

"Ye'll walk or ye'll walk the plank."

Planks he knows. (Planks, bad. Back into sea, bad. Human-Thorne in sea, bad).

Thorne pushes himself up, his clammy body protesting. His mind tilts and tips with that same horrible dizziness, and his arms flail out. A hand grabs his arm like a vice. "This way."

He shoves Thorne forward and he trips, landing on the ground. The pirate curses. "Get him some breeches. I don't want ta' see his arse another time."

Thorne reaches behind him, fastening the small cloth he was given to wrap around his waist. He grits his teeth and tries to stand.

Tumbles.

Stays on the ground until a pair of "breeches" smack him in the head.

When Thorne has rucked them over his traitorous legs, the pirate says, "The buttons, ye pox-faced swine."

 _Buttons?_ Thorne shrugs. "I don't need buttons."

"Maybe Princess Cress prefers her men that way," says another male voice, without the strange accent of the first. Must be the one who got him the breeches. "Maybe she really _is_ a wench."

The pirate exchange a chuckle as Thorne pushes down another wave of nausea.

"Get 'im in irons before the Captain comes down 'ere."

Thorne is chained, and the term 'slave' really cements itself into his mind. He really is being sold like property.

What if Cress never made it back to her kingdom? What if Sybil killed her upon her return?

Fresh air hits his face and it helps him claim some balance, but still not enough to take confident strides. He leans heavily on the two pirates who are practically dragging him across the deck.

Captain Jina's voice appears next to him. "You better not be lying about Princess Cress, or I shall have your tongue. I'll have them match your eyes."

"That won't be necessary, my lady," he says. Being polite never hurt. Flattery never hurt either, but he can't think of what to compliment Captain Jina on.

All the pirates laugh, but Captain Jina smacks him. "That's Captain, to you."

"My apologies," he mutters, bowing his dizzy head.

"Take him to the emissary of the palace," she commands. She struts around as they all do something that involves a lot of clanging which Thorne can't figure out.

"Yes, good," she says, clicking her tongue in approval.

"I'm hideous," says the second voice that gave him the breeches.

"You don't look like a pirate, and that's what's important."

"But Captain…," he whines.

"If you see anything of value while making the trade, feel free to take it so long as you are not caught. I don't need an arrest warrant for the Farafrah Pirates today."

"There is always an arrest warrant out for us, Captain."

She snickers and doesn't say anything.

Thorne wrinkles his brow. Okay…

He's put into a smaller boat and soon it's just him and the pirate who's supposed to find the emissary.

Thorne has many ideas about how to bribe this man with wealth beyond his wildest dreams from his father's kingdom, but when he can't think of how to get _back_ to his father's kingdom—especially as a human—he keeps his mouth shut. There will be a time for bargaining for his life if they have other plans for him.

He can't think of any other time when he has been so silent amid another merperson— _person_.

* * *

"A _concubine_? How dare you imply—"

"A slave. For Princess Cress."

The pirate is sounding less and less sure. Thorne is glad that Captain Jina isn't here.

"Well, I never!"

There's been too much back and forth about this.

"If I may interject," Thorne says, putting on his most regal, smooth sounding voice, and standing straighter—it's much easier to stand on land, he's learned. But something sharp prods him in the back. Blasted pirate.

"He was shipwrecked. He said he was bought by Princess Cress as her male concubine to be delivered here in return for payment. I expect payment for my troubles. My crew does."

"Princess Cress does not keep male concubines!"

"I assure you, she does," says Thorne.

"Quiet," they both snap.

Well, that was a piece of information from his textbooks he could throw out.

"Tell her my name is Thorne," he insists, despite feeling another sting at his back. "I helped her after her own shipwreck. That is how she knows me. She will pay any price, I assure you."

Would she, though?

"You are _filthy_." The emissary spits.

"I resent that," Thorne says.

"You are not even worthy to be in Her Highness's presence. Away with you."

As the pirate drags him away from wherever they are, stones cut into his feet.

"Well, that went well, don't you think?" he says.

"Captain Jina will have your tongue for this," the pirate snaps.

Thorne finally starts getting desperate. Not a trait he appreciates, and one that seems to be surfacing far too much for his liking lately, but one that makes buried instincts come out nonetheless.

"CRESS!" he yells. "PRINCESS CRESS!"

"Stop it," the pirate growls.

But he can hear other people around him, and if the pirate hasn't killed him yet, he doubts he will do it before he gets to the ship. "PRINCESS CRESS! IT'S THORNE!" He wants to add, _THE MERMAN_!, but even in desperation he is not _that_ foolish.

Now people are murmuring around him.

As a prince, he's never had to grovel for anything and his words come out salty and unfamiliar: "ANYONE LISTENING! TELL PRINCESS CRESS THAT THORNE NEEDS HER HELP! I RESCUED HER FROM THE SEA! SHE WILL GIVE YOU A MIGHTY REWARD IF—"

Whatever object the pirate holds cuts into his back in a way that makes him shut up completely. He lets out a string of curses, knowing there is blood now. Maybe the pirate really will kill him.

Miserable human life.

* * *

Thorne can smell the sea's brackish wind and he hasn't even gotten in the boat yet. With his irons, the pirate's death grip, the pointy object at his back, and his legs growing weaker with every step, he can't get away. If his father saw him now, he would be more ashamed than he usually his.

A prince, in chains. A captain, unable to escape.

His father, who gave him over to the Sea Witch without a second thought.

"Last chance," Thorne says. "You could leave the Farafrah Pirates with all the wealth you'll receive. You could claim it for yourself. Princess Cress's price for me will be high. Why bring it back to the ship? Keep it for yourself. Find yourself a fem—a woman."

"One more word outta you—"

"Stop!"

The voice is so faint he barely hears it. But the sound of feet running across stone cuts through the sounds of the sea.

"I command you to stop!"

Thorne tilts his head back with relief. That voice, he does recognize.

"Cress!" he calls, then remembers himself. "Your Highness!"

"I will kill you myself," the pirate spits, his grip on Thorne tightening.

The feet stop and Cress gasps. "What have you done to him?"

"What business is it of yours, Highness, what I do with my slave?"

" _Slave?_ "

Thorne clears his throat. "I explained, Your Highness, that your representative had purchased me from my previous owner. I was shipwrecked on the way to be delivered. These—ah, gentleman brought me here. To receive payment." He winks, realizes he can't wink, and settles on what he hopes is a pleading look.

"Aye, I want payment."

Cress is silent and Thorne wishes desperately he could see her. The image of her in her tattered dress, her body wrapped around his in the water is all but haunting him.

"O-Of course," she says, her voice going all high-pitched. "I apologize for my emissary, Sir." She's addressing the pirate. "Name your price."

Thorne keeps quiet while they haggle, and he thinks he ought to give Cress some pointers about negotiating. She agrees to an absorbent amount of money and when the pirate finally leaves, Thorne is shoved into someone else's grip, but it's not Cress's.

A rough yank of his irons.

"Don't hurt him!" Small, soft hands land on his wrist. "Can't you see they've beaten him?"

The sea beat him, but he has no intention of arguing.

"Yout Highness," says someone—a guard, perhaps?—"where shall we put this slave?"

"He is not a slave," she says firmly, "but a hero. This man saved my life at sea, and it's clear that he had to lie about his position in order to get away from that man. Alert everyone that there shall be a banquet in his honor tonight."

Thorne groans.

"Or perhaps whenever the gentleman is feeling better."

The guards confer amongst themselves.

"What of Her Ladyship Sybil? With all the commotion he made about town, I'm sure word has reached her already, Your Highness," says another guard.

"No, leave Sybil out of this. Take him to my rooms."

"Your Highness, rumor has it this man claimed to be a concubine. What if his intentions—"

A nervous laugh. "D-Don't be ridiculous."

"Your _Highness_ , I must insist—"

"Get a nurse," she continues, but her voice is rather shaky. "He needs immediate care."

"The infirmary then?"

"No, it is too far away. Look at his _condition_. He will rest in my rooms until a proper guest room has been prepared."

"Thank you," Thorne manages to get out. He wants to say more but he knows now is not that time. And the idea of staying in Cress's rooms makes him even dizzier than he already feels, but in the best possible way.

The guards bark out more orders in response, but before they can move him, hands cup his cheeks. He sinks painfully to the ground. He has withstood long enough, and now all he wants to do is rest—preferably with Cress.

Which is probably not allowed.

But he will take her hands on his face and the smell of her perfume and the sound of her breathing in front of him. He will take this familiarity, this safety, this sanctuary she is offering him.

"What happened?" she whispers. "You're _here_ —you're not—you're—"

"Shh."

A stroke on his cheek.

He hisses.

Her hands disappear.

"I don't think you'll believe me," he whispers back. "But I'm glad I found you."


	10. Chapter 10

Cinder scrunches up her face in concentration. The energy courses through her fingertips and _bam!_

The statue of her face crumbles right before her eyes.

She winds up again, pulling her arm back as if she is ready to throw something. She breathes deeply, the undulations of the sea calming her before she releases her rage. The bright, white sparks shoot from her fingertips and she smashes her mirror without even touching it.

It's been far too long since she's used her powers. If she had practiced them, perhaps she would have been able to do something before her brother was maimed and taken right in front of her.

There's a knock at her door.

She shoves her hand behind her back, as though someone will know it's magic just from seeing it.

"Come in!" she calls.

Prince Kai swims in, his bangs falling in his face as he comes to a stop just past her doorway. "I'm sorry to disturb you in here again," he says. He looks around her private chambers like he knows he's not supposed to be there but is a bit too curious to stay away. "I wanted to check on you. How are you?"

She turns away. "How do you think I am?"

She hears him swim into her room. "From the status of these artifacts, I take it not well. Though, I must admit, my question was only a formality. I can't even begin to imagine how devastated you must be."

She sighs heavily and goes to perch at the edge of her bed. Kai is floating in front of her mirror, holding a broken piece of statue in one hand.

"Is there anything I can do?" he asks.

"Do you want to come to the Sea Witch's kingdom with me and reclaim my brother?"

His eyes widen. "You're going?"

She stares at her hand, which is her only secret weapon. It's not strong enough yet. "I meant it more sarcastically," she admits, "but it has crossed my mind."

Kai rubs the back of his neck. "I can't believe I was thinking of going there and bargaining with her for my father. After everything I've heard about her, it seems so crazy now. The way she just _stabbed_ your brother in—" He clears his throat, his ears turning red. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to say that."

"It's okay. I'd rather we acknowledge it than ignore that it ever happened, like my father does."

"He does seem like he's not that upset about it," he says slowly. "I'm sure he's just acting for the sake of the court and his visitors."

"I don't think he is. My father has always been rather…uncaring…towards my brother, but I never imagined to this extent. I think he thinks Thorne was wrong, and therefore this is justified. He's just going on as if nothing happened, when he should be preparing for a war against Queen Levana."

"A war? But what of the treaties?"

"What's the point of them if my family isn't safe?"

"Did he really help a human?"

She listens for judgement in Kai's voice, searches his face for it too. But Kai is unreadable. He is just as intense as he always is, looking like he is trying to figure out Cinder just as much.

She has to look away.

"Yes, I saw him do it. It was a female with long, wild hair. She was drowning and he swam to the sea floor to help her. I'm not sure what came over him."

"But you were in Levana's territory too?"

She decides there's no point in hiding it from him any longer. "No, we were in the unclaimed waters."

"All the way out there?"

"We need to get away sometimes. It's a lot having all this scrutiny from the merpeople."

"I understand the need to escape, but it's so close to Levana's territory."

"We always leave before the vortex comes. She's really not supposed to be there anyway, since it's outside her borders too, but who is there to stop her?"

"So if you weren't in her territory, then why did Levana say he trespassed?"

She shrugs. "I don't know what happened. I left him when he tried to help the human. I thought he would follow me if I left. We always leave when the vortex comes. Always. But then—he was gone." She snaps her fingers. "Just like that, vanished like a wisp in the water. I searched for him after the vortex. I worried he might be dead."

"The only good thing, perhaps," Kai says, swimming closer, "is that we know he survived." He reaches out a hesitant hand and tilts her chin up. "Thorne made it back once. Maybe he can do it again."

She swats him away and swims to her doorway. "He was captured. This is different. We have to _do_ something. We can't just sit and wait for him to somehow escape the Sea Witch. That has never happened. Did you see what she turns mermen into? Did you see her beasts? What if Thorne is one of those?"

She flexes her hand. Could she have the same power to deform—not just destroy—if she worked on her magic? She has never told anyone of them. Her father keeps his magic in his trident, but it is a magic he has earned as a king, not inherited in his blood. The trident was passed down from his father, and one day, Cinder is supposed to receive it when she takes the throne.

No one knows she has this power inside her.

Not even Thorne.

She has always wondered if that makes her bad. Not just her secret, but the fact that she keeps it secret.

She just wants to be like everyone else. No one else has powers, and she doesn't know why she does.

"Does Common still have magic?"

Kai startles at the change in topic. "I'm sorry?"

"Does Common still have magic? All the rulers were bestowed gifts by the ancient sea goddesses."

His eyes soften. "You know that's not something I can tell you."

"Unless we are married."

"Right…"

"Would you tell me then? If we were united? You would share your mergkingdom's secrets with mine?"

He swims closer. "I would share my secrets with you. My Queen. Not with anyone else."

She nods. If Common does have magic, perhaps there is a chance of getting her brother back. Her father's trident and his army is nothing against what Levana can do. Common's army is much stronger, although if it is due to magic or military strength, Cinder does not know. The merkingdoms have lived in peace for more than a hundred years now. It is her father who tells her that Angeles is weak — that they need the alliance with Common. Maybe her father knows what the magic is.

She has always known that an alliance with Common could help them defeat Levana.

Maybe now is the time to do it.

"Marry me."

Kai splutters. "I'm sorry?"

"You came here to decide if you wanted to marry me. If you've decided in my favor, then marry me. I'll say yes."

"I can't help but think your declarations have everything to do with your brother and nothing to do with me."

Kai is handsome, funny, smart, and kind. She knows that from being around him for the last week. But he is right. Her feelings aren't relevant — they've never been relevant.

"Our fathers have everything to do with this marriage," she says. "It is a political alliance, we both know that."

"Perhaps. I had hoped to court you for some time first, should we both be in agreement."

"Why court when we both know this is inevitable? Unless, of course, you will pay the same visit to Princess Winter and find her more favorable."

Kai looks offended. "I'm not paying her a visit."

"Then what do you say? Will you marry me?"

"Cinder, I beg of you. Do not make this decision so hastily. My father and I will be here for two weeks yet."

His hesitation is making her guess his answer. She's disappointed, but she should have thought as much.

"Is it my deformed fin?"

He blanches.

Where she normally tries to hide it, she puts it out in the open, right before his eyes so that he can see it in all of its ugliness. "I can still swim faster than anyone."

"Cinder—"

"I'd like an answer."

"If you wish to marry me—"

"I do."

His eyes narrow. "If you wish to marry me, you will not force me into this because of your brother! I should like my bride to also be concerned about me."

"If you were concerned about _me_ at all, you would understand that my brother is a part of me. You get him when you get me."

"Princess, you are acting irrationally. Whether your brother is here or not, an alliance between Angeles and Common is a big deal. I wish you would treat it as such."

"If you will not answer me about our alliance, then answer at least this: If we were to join in matrimony, would you help me get my brother back?"

Kai sighs. "I knew this was about that. You're hoping we'll go to war, won't you?"

"What kind of future king would I be marrying if he didn't defend his bride's family?"

"This is much bigger than saving your brother. Even if our merkingdoms join, keeping the peace would be of utmost importance. Going to war with Levana risks more then we can both imagine right now."

"So, you would do nothing."

"Please—"

"Thank you for that clarification," she says curtly. She swims past him, their fins brushing against each other. An electric current shoots up her side but she pushes it away. Whether she likes him or not doesn't matter. What matters is finding her brother and bringing him home. "I shall find my brother myself."

She swims away, leaving Kai in her bedroom.

She searches frantically for Iko until she finds her in her chambers with Tressa. They are playing with Iko's hair.

"Cinder!" Iko squeaks. "Prince Kai was looking for you!"

"He found me," she grumbles.

"Didn't he look dashing today?"

"I sure thought so," Tressa agrees.

"I need your help," Cinder says. "Can you find Scarlet?"

"Scarlet?"

"She's in the guard. She has fiery red hair. She's friends with Thorne."

Her heart pinches. _Was_ friends with Thorne.

"What do you need her for?"

Normally, Cinder is happy to share all of her thoughts with her merlady-in-waiting. She considers Iko one of her best friends. But she needs to be careful what she says around whom now.

"I want to ask her about something now that Thorne is no longer the captain. We'll need a replacement for his position."

"Your Highness," says Tressa, "I believe your father has already named his successor. There are all these ranks and orders of things already established."

"I know. But as the future Queen of Angeles, perhaps I'd like a say in some of these ranks myself."

"I'll go look for her now," Iko says.

"I'll go with you," Cinder says.

"It's not necessary."

"I insist."

"Very well," Iko says. "You can fill me in on Prince Kai gossip while we're looking for her."

They swim out of the palace together, Cinder making up a story about the prince to placate Iko. When Iko isn't looking, she pulverizes a piece of rock on the seabed below her.

She needs all the practice she can get.


	11. Chapter 11

Thorne wakes to unprecedented warmth.

It's nothing he has ever experienced before. He is smothered, stuck, engulfed.

And it feels _so_ good.

Gone is the salty, whipping sea. Gone is the tilting of the ship. Gone is his need to stand up.

" _Meow_."

Thorne starts. "Hello?"

He can hear something padding around. Someone?

" _Meow."_

"Who's there?"

No one responds, but a small purring sound gets closer. Something shifts next to him and suddenly something is on top of his stomach. He reaches out his hand to swat it away and lands on some texture that he has never felt before. It's soft and cushiony, a bit like whatever he's lying in, but it's alive and picks up its noises when Thorne cautiously rubs a hand over it.

Not a threat, he thinks, though a bit heavier than whatever is already around him.

There's a sudden bang of a door and the thing he's petting startles as much as Thorne.

"You're awake!"

He can't stop the grin from growing on his face. "Cress!"

The door shuts and she bounds across the room, and he's glad that he had time on the pirate ship to learn about human sounds. Footsteps vary between people and Cress's are softer and quicker than most. Then her feet are no more and he feels a weight shift next to him.

"How are you feeling?"

"Where am I?"

There's a moment's hesitation. "In my bed."

Thorne considers this. Flashes of Cress finding him before he passed out come back to him. So, they are in her private quarters. Human beds are decidedly more comfortable than merpeople beds, he decides.

"And where are you?" he asks.

Another hesitation. "In my bed."

"Are you blushing?"

"Maybe."

"I take it this is not appropriate for a princess."

"No one needs to know! And I'm just sitting here. It is _my_ bed after all."

She's stuttering a little bit and he laughs, but then he thinks of Cinder being caught in her own room with Prince Kai. The thought of his sister takes the grin right off his face. He swallows and tries to focus on the present moment. "What is wrapped around me? I can only move my arms."

Cress giggles. "There are several blankets and a fluffy duvet. It's meant to keep you warm. The doctor worried you might have hypothermia so we covered you up well. I figured a merman can't get hypothermia, as you swim around in cold water all day, but I obviously couldn't tell them that. Plus now you're…well, a man." She pauses. "If you're too warm, we can remove them. Are you dressed?"

He's not really sure. He doesn't feel any wet clothes on him, but then considers that on land, clothes probably aren't wet. "It feels nice. Leave it."

" _Meow_."

"What is that? Is it an animal?"

"Boots is on top of you!"

The thing on top of him — Boots — makes the _meow_ sound again.

"What is it?"

Cress shifts on the bed and the warm, fluffy thing on top of him vanishes. "Boots is the best little kitten in the world." Cress begins to coo. "Yes, you are. You were here making sure Thorne slept well the whole time, weren't you? Perfect baby."

The kitten is clearly as delighted to be around Cress as Thorne is. He wishes he could draw up a better mental picture, but for now he deems Boots to be a decent snuggle buddy. He kind of wishes Cress would put him back.

"What's on my eyes?"

He reaches up but Cress's hand stills his movement. "Don't touch it. It's a bandage and the doctor put medication on underneath. You had really bad cuts. When it's time to remove them, we'll see if the doctor can do anything else for your sight." Her hand lingers against his. "What happened to you?"

"You wouldn't believe me if I told you."

"Yes, you said that. But you must remember I've met a merman."

He threads his fingers through Cress's simply because he can. If the only good thing about being a human is that he can be around her, he won't waste any moments she allows him to take. He's not sure what's appropriate but they've already kissed and there certainly wasn't enough of that, anyway.

"There's an evil Sea Witch who takes the souls of humans when they drown. You were supposed to drown. I saved you so she wanted to claim my soul instead. She turned me into a human and then tried to drown me."

Cress gasps next to him and squeezes his hand so tightly. "This is my fault?"

"No, it's mine. I knew the laws of our kind and I knew I was breaking them when I helped you."

"Did she take your eyes too?"

"Yes," he says, a bit bitterly. He reaches to clutch his pendant and panic grips him. "My pendant. Someone took it!"

"No, it's over here."

Cress leaves the bed and returns with it, pressing it into his palm. He ties it around his neck immediately.

"It's very pretty."

"It belonged to my ancestors."

"What about your family? Do they know what's happened?"

He hasn't told her he's a prince and he's not sure how much information he should give out about the merkingdoms. "No," he says and it's not a lie. They have no idea he's a human. "They probably think I'm dead."

"Thorne, I'm so sorry for all the pain I've caused you."

"It's not your fault."

Her fingers stroke his cheek. It doesn't hurt as badly as it did before he fell asleep.

"I'm going to take care of you," she whispers. "I'm going to teach you all about being human and how to fit in. This is my kingdom, and though I'm not old enough to rule it quite yet, I do have the authority to make sure anything you need is yours. Anything."

What he needs is to get back to his kingdom, figure out how to kill Levana, and return to his merman form.

Maybe not in that order.

"You already saved me."

"I did nothing of the sort. It was Little Cress. She saved you."

"Who is Little Cress?"

"She's a bird who can talk. A cockatoo, to be exact. She's very smart and yesterday she came to find me, crying, 'Thorne help! Thorne help!' I almost didn't come. I thought I must have dreamed you up, you see. That the sea and sun had mangled my mind so much that you were just a hallucination. The ship that rescued me never saw you. But Little Cress kept insisting and then it occurred to me that maybe you were really here. I thought maybe you were at port and you had found Satellite by swimming here. But when I went outside the guards told me that there was a lunatic screaming that he was my concubine." The motion on his cheek stopped. "Thorne, do you know what a concubine is?"

"Of course."

A beat.

"I think what I think it is…isn't what it is. I was ambushed by pirates. I had to think on my fin. Feet."

"Well, anyway, let's not use that word anymore. You are here as my special guest. And I'll make sure everyone knows the hero you are."

"I'm no hero."

Fingers press on his lips. "Shh."

He puts his hand over hers, then gently presses her knuckles to his lips. "I haven't been able to stop thinking about you, Cress. You've haunted my dreams."

He doesn't expect her mouth to find his. Her lips are so soft and gentle and warm, and Thorne wishes he felt better and could turn over to deepen it. But Cress is in charge now and she pulls away and whispers, "Is it terrible that I'm glad you're here?"

"A little," he admits. "But I know I'm irresistible."

He holds out his arm and she snuggles closer, dropping Boots on the other side of him. The kitten purrs and nears Thorne's other arm. But he ignores the kitten and uses his free hand to play with Cress's hair. It's no longer wild and matted, but smooth and silky and perfect.

For a moment, he forgets any thoughts of kingdoms, magic, and pain.

Only he and Cress exist.

They are alone in their own private cove.


	12. Chapter 12

Cress is a patient teacher.

In a few days' time, she teaches Thorne what sounds correlate with the words he already knows. She tells him that the creaky sound coming down the hallway means meals in their rooms. She teaches him how certain types of footsteps mean guards or worse, Sybil Mira. She doesn't laugh when he jumps at new noises or when someone else comes into a room when he hasn't been expecting it.

At the same time, she brings him up to speed about human vocabulary and otherness. She holds his hand the first few days of walking. She doesn't laugh when he stumbles or trips into things, even when it's unclear if it's because of his newfound blindness or humanness. She lies for him, says how bad he got hurt in his shipwreck.

For once, he's relieved that he bothered saving a human.

Still, he misses the sea, he misses his sister, and he misses his eyes.

He does not miss responsibility, or anyone trying to tell him he needs more of it. Here he is a prince of his own kind: one who commands his own destiny, as no one but him knows what it really should have been.

And then there's Cress.

He's not sure if what's happening to him is called love because he's never been in love before. And though Cress sometimes lets him kiss her, it's always when no one is looking. At least — from a lack of footsteps or creaking or talking — it seems there's no one looking. He gets it; he was never one to kiss and tell either, even if he liked to pretend he did just to make his sister mad.

But at least most people could tell when he was interested in someone.

With Cress, he can't really tell. He can't see how she is with other people when he's not there, or know if she's sending secret looks to someone else even though he's present. He tries not to think too hard about it. It digs somewhere deep in his soul. And that's never a good feeling.

He blames his new lack of confidence on his new lack of sight and tail.

"What are we doing today?" Thorne asks her.

They're strolling outside on the beach, which they've started doing every morning. Cress figured out he likes dipping his toes in the water because it feels a little bit more like home. He's figured out that she likes holding his hand while they walk — even though he no longer needs it for support. The sand is sloped and uneven, but he's learned that walking on this type of surface is a bit like swimming against the current.

"I want you to meet someone," she says.

He stops. "Not Sybil."

"Well, yes. We've been avoiding her long enough. I told her that you'll finally be well enough for us to hold the banquet in your honor tomorrow. But that's not who I meant."

"Sybil tried to kill you. I can't believe you haven't banished her from your kingdom."

"Thorne. There are many things happening in my kingdom that many would not understand. I must keep feigning ignorance that she tried to hurt me."

"I saw you fighting. You can use me as a witness."

Her thumb runs along his lips, silencing him. "You're blind. No one will believe you."

"Thanks." He has much more to say about the topic, but isn't ready to ruin their beach walks yet. With a resigned sigh, he tugs her along the uneven sand. "So, who am I meeting?"

"His name is Dr. Erland."

* * *

"Good morning, Your Highness," Dr. Erland says. "It's always a pleasure to see you in my shop."

Cress leaves Thorne and he imagines that the man is bowing in front of the beautiful young princess.

"It's wonderful to see you again, Dr. Erland," Cress chirps. "This is my friend, Thorne."

"Ah." Something rustles — papers? Though they have books under the sea, they sound differently than they do in the air. There's a squeak and then there are footsteps. Maybe he was sitting, then.

"I've heard about you."

Thorne jumps at the man's voice so close to his ear. "Excellent things, I imagine."

Dr. Erland harrumphs and then a cold, slightly wrinkly hand presses against Thorne's. There's silence as they shake hands, and Thorne winces as Dr. Erland squeezes down against his fingers. He pulls away as fast as he can.

"Yes," Dr. Erland says, "only excellent things course." Thorne can tell he doesn't mean it at all.

"Have you heard about his shipwreck then?" Cress says. Her fingers find his again and he's relieved to have her gentle touch back.

"Indeed. Must have been quite the ordeal."

Okay, so the man doesn't believe he was in a shipwreck at all. Thorne cocks his head. "What was it you do again?"

He harrumphs again. "Does the 'Dr.' in _Dr. Erland_ not give it away?"

Cress laughs, but it's not her nervous laugh — and Thorne has memorized her laughs by now — so the girl clearly has no clue that Dr. Erland doesn't like him at all. It's probably because some people who associate with royalty also don't like associating with those who aren't royalty. He imagines it'll be the same with Sybil Mira at the banquet, so he supposes this is good practice.

"That's funny," Cress says with another giggle. "Thorne, Dr. Erland is our best herbalist. I thought perhaps he could take a look at your eyes and see if he can't give you something that might make them better."

"Do you really think that —"

Dr. Erland yanks him away from Cress and then he's sitting in a stool of some sort, his head tilted back. The man's fingers pry open his eyelids. Thorne squirms away and Dr. Erland almost scratches him.

"Hey! What do you think you're doing?" He's on his feet and he dusts himself off as if Boots had just been climbing all over him, leaving all that fur on his clothes.

An impatient foot tapping. "In order for me to examine your eyes, I must actually examine them." He has a stuffy accent, like he's not from the same land where Cress comes from. Thorne decides it's rather snooty and irritating.

"Naturally," he says. "But do you actually have to _touch_ my eyes? I'm perfectly capable of keeping my eyelids open even if I can't see."

"Come on, Thorne." Cress guides him back into the chair. "Let him do what he needs to do."

For some reason, a cold sweat breaks out on Thorne's neck as Dr. Erland pries open his eyelids again. His stomach garbles and he gets dizzy when the man flips his eyelid inside out. His vision is black but his mind sees the horrified look on his sister's face and the red of Levana's lips right before she stabbed out his eyes.

"Hmm." Dr. Erland's breath smells like fish. Which used to smell good, but above land is not so appetizing — especially coming out of someone else's mouth.

When he finally lets go of him, Thorne feels like he's been hanging upside down for hours.

"Is there anything that can be done?" Cress asks. "The regular doctors have tried everything but they say something must have pierced his eyes during the shipwreck. Only time can tell but they are doubtful."

"Doubtful isn't a great word," Thorne says quickly. "Let's remove that from our vocabulary."

Dr. Erland says, "There are remedies we could try. Sometimes the body can heal itself. We could perform a minimal surgery."

"I thought you were an herbalist," Thorne says, the queasy feeling coming back. He imagines scalpels and dinner knives attacking his eyes.

"Perhaps surgery was too grand of a word. I'll be making incisions to extract useful ingredients for a tonic."

Thorne licks his lips nervously. "Incisions where?"

"The elbow, the stomach, the middle of the thigh, and the pubic bone."

Thorne has learned enough about the human anatomy the last several days that he doesn't have to ask where any of those body parts are. He recoils and takes a step back, crushing Cress's foot underneath his.

She yelps.

"I don't think that will be necessary. And a tonic? I'm not drinking anything from my own body."

"Very well." There are footsteps and then the same sound of the chair.

"I think we should try it," Cress says.

"There is no _we_ in this _it_. _I'm_ the one who would be getting all of the incisions in four of _my_ body parts."

"Don't you want to give healing the best shot? Dr. Erland doesn't offer his services to many people."

_I wonder why._

He pulls Cress aside, unsure if he's really moving farther away from Dr. Erland and his desk. "Can I think about it? My body has been through a lot of changes lately." He cups her cheek gently and finds her ear, whispering, "I know you've noticed."

"Stop," she whispers back, a little irritably, "you're making me blush."

He steps back. Right. They're in public. Cress doesn't appreciate his advances in public, even if he meant — for once — his comment rather innocently. He was been referring to his former secret state of merman.

"Sorry," he says officially, adapting the voice that he used when speaking with subjects at court. "I only meant that the past few days have been difficult with recovering from my injuries. I can still feel the bruises all over my body. I think it will be better to wait a little longer before injecting things into my skin. And other places. I should be in top shape for the banquet tomorrow."

"The longer you wait," Dr. Erland says, "the less likely you are to recover."

"I suppose I'll take that chance," he says coolly. The air is getting warm and that nauseous feeling returns to his stomach. He just wants to go back to his room. "Thank you for your time, Dr. Erland. It's been a pleasure."

He prods the ground in front of him with the walking stick that Cress gave him. It's not perfect but it does help him not slam into things as much. He finds the exit and hurries out of the stuffy shop. He sighs when he remembers he has no idea how to get back to the castle. They walked a long time along the beach.

Cress catches up with him before he can make any wrong turns.

"Thorne! What's wrong?"

He schools his features. "Just hungry. You ready to eat something?"

He can tell by the pregnant pause that she wants to say more, but after a moment she simply says, "Sure. There's a crab shack I've been wanting to take you to. Do you eat crab?"

He takes deep breath before throwing himself into the change of topic. "Sure. If someone else catches it. Nasty little buggers always try to cut your tail."

She laughs. "They're already dead by the time they arrive on your plate. Cooked and everything."

"Cooked?" He shakes his head sadly. "We need to have a serious conversation about how you humans eat seafood. Tsk, tsk, tsk."

Her hand finds his. He takes it, though this time a bit reluctantly. Why is it okay to hold his hand, but not give her a caress? Do they mean different things, here in this strange land called Satellite?

There are so many things he wants to tell her and ask her, but what if she doesn't feel the same? He hasn't even been in Satellite for a week. They barely know each other. They're a different _species_. Will things get weird between them? Will he lose his human guide? The only one who knows the truth? Where will he go if he doesn't have Cress?

"Crab sounds good, though," he says, forcing his voice to come out chipper. "Lead the way."


	13. Chapter 13

"You look excellent, sir."

Thorne's fingers run up his coat sleeves, the feeling of fabric against his skin still strange. He has gone from never wearing anything at all to wearing short-sleeved shirts and pants around the palace, and now he's stuffed his human body into an ensemble for the ball. One which he can't even see himself in. He turns to his manservant. "You're sure?"

"Of course, Master Thorne."

"Hmm." Thorne isn't totally convinced. He's been around servants long enough to know they tell royalty whatever they want to hear. But Thorne isn't royalty here—not to them, anyway, and not to the man Cress assigned to help him get dressed. He _could_ be telling him the truth. But his jacket is a plum color, apparently, and that seems odd for any clothing Thorne has seen. Then again, he hasn't seen much.

"I'm going for dashing," he tells the man.

"To impress the princess?"

Thorne looks around. All black, but turning his head helps him listen for others who might be in the vicinity. Deciding they are still very much alone, except for Boots, who has chosen to stay in Thorne's room since mid-week—and the kitten already knows all his secrets anyway—he says, "Yes, of course." He pulls on his lapels. "Will I impress?"

Hands come to still his movement and adjust the thing around his neck— _a bowtie_. It constricts his breathing, but apparently, it's fashionable. "I believe Her Highness is already quite taken with you, sir, but if her affections hang upon how you look tonight…"

Thorne raises an eyebrow.

"I daresay you shall have no problem winning her over completely."

He lets out a relieved breath, choosing to believe it's the truth. "Thank you for your help."

"Now, if you'll just follow me, I shall accompany you to the ballroom where the celebrations are taking place."

The manservant thrusts Thorne's walking stick into his hand, and he curves his fingers around the smooth handle. He's getting used to walking with it, getting used to not seeing, even if the entire situation is utterly disappointing. He's considered Dr. Erland's proposal quite a few times, but the thought of more changes to his body still frightens him, even if he'll never tell Cress.

As he makes his way down the winding palace hallways, the _tap tap_ of his stick mixing with the _click clack_ of his servants' boots, he thinks now would be a great time to get his sight back. After all, Cress has picked out a gown just for this event, and rumor around the palace is that it's beautiful. He has only ever seen the princess in her tattered blue dress, and it's all he _can_ imagine when he sees her. The colorful images of his school textbooks come back to him at times, and he tries to place some of those clothes over his mental image of Cress, but it never seems quite right.

Tonight is also the first time he'll meet Sybil Mira, Cress's guardian. He's heard so much about her that he feels he already knows her, feels he would be justified pushing her out of a tower if opportunity presented itself. The picture of her tying Cress to that chest and letting her sink to the ocean floor will be ingrained in his mind forever. If not for Sybil Mira, Cress wouldn't have drowned. Thorne would not have gone after her.

He wouldn't be human.

He wouldn't be blind.

Thorne shakes away those thoughts as the hustle and bustle of the ball gets too loud down the hallway. As they approach, Thorne grabs his manservant by the arm and says, "Tell me what to expect."

"Of course, sir. The palace staff has been working around the clock to make this the most spectacular ball Satellite has seen all year." He clears his throat. "Of course, much of Her Highness's requirements were modified after we spoke with Lady Mira. Princess Cress wanted a banquet in your honor, but her Ladyship deemed it a good time to remind the country of Satellite's beauty. All the emissaries have been invited, and even representatives from neighboring kingdoms. They'll all be dressed in the latest fashions, like you."

He pauses, so Thorne does too, waiting.

"When you enter the ballroom, we shall seat you next to Princess Cress. To her right will be Lady Sybil. You will sit at the head of the room with them while dinner is served. We will cross over the dance floor, where I assume you and the princess will open up the night's dancing."

Thorne pulls at his collar, suddenly too warm. "We will?"

"You shall have to ask the princess, I suppose," he says, "to make sure she wants to dance with you. Either way, she will open the festivities, as is tradition."

Cress will want that, right? He doesn't know how to human-dance, but that's not the manservant's business. Nor is it his business that Thorne only learned how to walk a little over a week ago. He holds his chin up. "Will the others dance too?"

"Of course."

"Well, here goes nothing," he says, and the manservant pulls open the doors.

The second he steps in, Thorne can feel it: the palpable energy of everyone hushing up, turning, and taking him in. Luckily for him, he's used to people staring, used to making grand entrances that draw the attention of the entire room. The only disadvantage is he can't tell _how_ they're looking. Are the girls swooning? Are the men jealous, knowing he's here to be with Cress?

And more importantly, can Cress see him yet?

He shuffles forward hesitantly, then sucks in a breath and takes more confident strides. He's the guest of honor, so they can make room for him. He relies on what the manservant told him: he walks straight ahead, hoping he's cutting across the dance floor and making his way to the table.

It's an enormous room, he realizes, when he's still walking, walking, walking. But he hears the people around him, feels them parting, knows he's going the right way.

Then he hears it: " _Thorne_."

_Cress._

Shells, if hearing his name roll off her lips isn't his favorite sound.

He stops and bows, the deepness of it still unfamiliar from years of never needing to do so. "Princess Cress," he murmurs, a polite smile poised on his lips. He doesn't know who's around her, and now is a time to be careful. He can't shake the memory of her being uncomfortable at his advances in public, and even if they started out with kisses and hand-holding, he's not sure if it's what she wants anymore. And if it's not what she wants then he has to watch himself carefully.

Last night she snuck into his room after he'd already settled into bed, and they spent most of the night talking about his adventures as a merman. He's never talked to someone so much in his life, but he never wants to stop—only wants to stop if it means cutting off the conversation with a kiss.

But this time he waited instead for her to kiss him, and it never came.

It never came, and she left before the servants could find them together in his room.

As he straightens out of his bow, he really hopes his outfit is everything the manservant told him it is. A hand comes on his back. He stiffens involuntarily, but it's only Cress. She introduces him to everyone at the table, and it's a whirlwind of names that he doesn't much care to memorize. All he knows is that Cress's hand stays on his back even as he shakes the hands of those he's meeting. It's unsettling how much he can feel the light press of her fingertips. He wants to reciprocate, and more: slide his hand on her waist, pull her against him, _see her_.

"Ah, yes," says a shrill voice. "The elusive Master Thorne."

Cress's hand stills on his back and comes to loop around his arm. "Thorne, may I present her Ladyship Sybil Mira, my guardian, and the guardian of Satellite until next year."

He straightens, holding his tongue, then bows, though not as deeply.

"Will you be joining us for dinner?" Sybil asks. "Or are you needed in the companionship rooms?"

There are gasps, but Thorne's brow only furrows as Cress's nails dig into his skin.

"I beg your pardon?" Thorne says.

"Only a joke," Sybil says with the cackle of a witch. "Did you not claim to be a concubine when you first arrived to Satellite?"

_Ah, that._

There are more gasps, but he's practiced for this with Cress, who's still rather disturbed at his choice of status aboard Jina's ship. Still, the dig shows just how much Sybil thinks of him. She wants to throw off his confidence, and certainly embarrass him. He veers off his practiced script.

"Desperate times call for desperate measures," he says.

"And crude measures, apparently, associating a princess with a concubine." Sybil tuts. "Utterly degrading."

"And yet you have companionship rooms," Thorne comments.

His words are met with silence.

Someone Thorne just met speaks up: "Here in Satellite, we aim to please the desires of _all_ our guests, Master Thorne."

"Some more than others," he muses.

When he's met with more silence, he knows he has angered Sybil.

_Good._

Cress pinches his skin. He flinches but keeps the smile on his face as she yanks him away and leads him to a seat. She shoves him into his chair rather forcefully. He can hear her nerves as she whispers, " _Don't_ talk back to Sybil."

He almost blows his true identity right then and there, wanting to tell her _this isn't even talking back_ and _you've seen nothing of Prince Thorne's capable tongue_. He wants to tell her that Sybil needs to learn respect and learn her place. Sybil should be bowing to him _and_ Cress simultaneously, worshipping the ground they both walk on like a real subject and praising her lucky shells that she's even _allowed_ to be a guardian. She wants Cress's kingdom for herself and she nearly killed Cress for it.

But he bites back his retort and smiles soothingly. "Forgive me, Highness."

Her grip on his shoulders loosens. "You look very handsome, by the way."

She slides into the seat next to him and soon there is a clinking of glasses. Thorne is still getting used to drinking, and unsalted water at that. It's strange how his body craves it now that he's on land, when all his life as a merman he's never even considered that such modified water exists and that his body could ever _need_ it. He fumbles around on the table in front of him and finds his glass—this one is for wine, Cress has explained to him.

"Lift it in the air," Cress whispers.

He does, slowly, careful not to spill on his new suit.

Sybil gives a regal welcome, naming every person of importance that's bothered to turn up to her banquet. At least one thing isn't different between merkingdoms and those of humans: all royal events are pompous and drawn out, and before long Thorne is half-listening to the speech, thinking instead of how each person must look, what age they are, and whether or not they'd use a companionship room.

Humans are…not at all what he expected.

His hand is getting tired from holding up his wine glass.

"Before we begin our meal, there's one more person I'd like to acknowledge," Sybil drones on. Thorne sighs. "A savior for our kingdom's most precious member—our very own Princess Cress." Thorne perks up, now listening intently. "I speak of none other than Master Thorne, who saved our princess from the terrible shipwreck she and I experienced."

Applause fills the room.

"When I saw that I was the sole survivor of the shipwreck, I did not know how to proceed." Sybil sounds like she's on the verge of tears now, and it's all Thorne can do to hold back his snort. "Grief overcame me. We mourned collectively as a kingdom. But even amidst the turbulent sea, this young man managed to save our princess and bring her to shore. We are lucky to have him in our presence today, and so _thrilled_ that we could help him out of his own troubles at sea."

Then they're toasting him, and glasses are clinking amidst applause and Thorne can only smile humbly while all the while plotting how to get Sybil out of the picture for Cress. Soon after, diplomatic chatter fills their table, and Cress is caught up in answering questions like a princess must. He listens for once, not bothering to insert himself anywhere, as he's had a life worth of diplomatic conversations that bore him to tears.

He devours his food instead. Eating is the strangest game when he can't see, always wondering if he can match the food to whatever his taste buds tell him. Of course, he never wins: nothing wriggles around, and nothing is cold or slimy like it is in the sea. Everything is tough and hard to chew and dripping in some sort of sauce.

It _does_ taste good, he'll give it that, but it's not the freshly-caught delight he's used to.

A hand finds its way to his elbow. "Finished?"

It's Cress, and he's relieved to hear her address him. He nods.

"Would you…" She trails off, and he imagines her biting her lip. "Would you dance with me, Thorne?"

He grins. "Of course."

And so he slides out of his chair and leaves his walking stick at the table, favoring instead Cress's warm hand in his palm. A hush falls over the ballroom and even Sybil's annoying voice shuts up as, he imagines, everyone watches their princess accompany the foreign commoner to the dance floor. Or maybe he's the one accompanying her, but he's seen this scene a million times during his time in court. Normally, Cinder goes first, reluctantly dancing with a merman of her choice—that is to say, their father's choice—and then Thorne goes second, grabbing whatever mermaid happens to be the most convenient at the time. Usually it's one he's never met before—repeat mermaids tend to get confused—and he watches how everyone else in the room sighs in disappointment that he didn't pick them.

Often, there are glares and pouts.

Thorne smirks at the thought, but it quickly slips off his face when Cress stops and guides one hand to the back of her waist. The music changes to something akin to a ballad, and Thorne is sure he's supposed to be moving, but it's been too long since his hand has been on Cress's waist, and now it's covered in something silky and yet lacy and _shells_ he wishes he could see the fabric. Cress's one hand grips his and she holds their intertwined fingers out in the air, and her other hand lands somewhere on his shoulder. "Ready?" she whispers.

"No," he whispers back. "You think I've danced on two legs before?"

She giggles. "Just follow my lead."

She moves backward, drawing him with her, and it's not as hard as he imagined. Cress applies pressure on his shoulder in time with the movements: she pulls if he's meant to move forward, pushes if he's meant to move back, and draws him side to side. He doesn't know if his feet are right, but he hasn't stepped on her yet, and he heard that's what counts.

That, and that Cress doesn't let go of his hand once. The warmth of her skin soothes him, and he grips her waist more tightly.

"Is everyone still watching?" he whispers after a time.

"They're starting to join in."

"May I pull you closer?"

A beat. Two steps forward and back.

"You may."

Their thighs bump together at first, but soon her chest is almost at his, though her skirt gets in the way.

"What are you wearing?" he finally says.

"I'm not sure you've seen something like this before."

"Tell me anyway." He strokes his thumb against her waist. "I already know you're the prettiest girl at the ball."

"You do not know that."

"I do."

He takes a deep breath and tries to spin her, hoping there isn't anyone else nearby to whack her into. When she returns safely to his arms, he adds, "I know you have the best legs, princess."

"Ohh, you…" she says, and he'd give anything to feel her cheeks, see if she's blushing. "I'm actually rather short for a human."

"Legs for days," he says with a grin. "And before you argue, I should know. I spent days carrying them around in the sea. Tell me about your dress."

She moves a little closer, and her voice turns shy. "It's yellow and orange. A bit over-the-top, if you ask me. It has a fitted bodice"—she guides his hand a little toward her back, as if to show him. He feels something that's not there beneath her normal sundresses: a ribbed boning, holding everything together—"and then it flares out into a tutu before cascading into a long skirt that reaches my ankles. The tutu is orange but everything else is yellow, like the sun. There's a lace layer, too, over everything."

Thorne moves his hand. "A tutu?"

"Not _now_." Cress moves his hand back up to her waist. "I'll let you feel it later."

He can't help but smirk, test the waters. "You mean if I'm good?"

She lets out a nervous giggle. "Tho- _orne_."

Something about the way she says his name makes him sure her attraction is still there. He can feel it between them, feel it in the air that clings around them, feel it in the way her hand squeezes his _just so_.

"Just kidding, princess," he says, wishing he could still pull off a good wink. He breathes in deeply. "You smell amazing."

"It's a sea-scented perfume."

He quirks an eyebrow.

"I wore it for you," she breathes.

"I do like the sea." He sucks up his courage. Moves forward and manages to lean down until his cheek is touching hers, until he can murmur into her ear. He almost trips, but soon she's exactly where he wants her. "And I like you, Princess Cress of Satellite. Very much."

The music changes before Cress can respond, and this tune is fast and the movements sadly force them apart. But before he can get too frustrated, he finds that moving around with her more quickly results in Cress bursting into a fit of giggles almost constantly, and he enjoys the sound of her laugh so much that soon he's purposely messing up to make her laugh even more. They bump into a few couples and Cress apologizes profusely but Thorne just twirls Cress more and more until he can barely catch his breath.

When the song finally fades into another slow tune, they're both nearly panting, but he knows Cress is smiling as widely as him, and he can barely keep from kissing her. He pulls her close, hoping she'll let him, and then, as if she can read his mind, she wraps her arms around his neck. Both his hands come around her waist, and they're just swaying, swaying, and Thorne forgets that there's anyone else around them.

It's just him and Cress, back again in the private cove of his mind.

Just when it can't get any better, Cress says, "I think I'm in love with you."


	14. Chapter 14

Thorne doesn't say the words back.

There isn't time; another girl cuts in and holds him hostage in her arms. She introduces herself as Luisa. She has a pretty voice and she likes to coo at him.

"We've all been wondering about the handsome stranger who has earned Princess Cress's affections."

Handsome, huh?

Yes, good.

He hopes Luisa represents the general female human population—that she's an authority on handsome men and he can go back to believing he's gorgeous not just in the sea.

"Thorne?"

Oh, right.

"Affections?" he hedges, even though Cress has just told him she loves him. He really has no idea who he's dancing with, and for all he knows, it could be Sybil pretending to be someone named Luisa. Though if it is, she can disguise her voice quite well. This girl also seems taller. "The princess is merely offering me her hospitality. I cannot thank her enough."

"Oh, I'm sure you _can't_." Her laughter rings in his ear as a finger trails up his chest, lands lightly on his neck. "Yes, you seem like the giving type. Not only handsome, but heroic."

"Looks can be deceiving."

"Tell me about yourself," she says, simpering.

He quickens his pace, knowing he's off tempo by a lot, but he finds he doesn't want to tell her anything about himself, and for once, he doesn't want to waste his time making up lines for someone to believe. But Luisa is having none of it.

"I wish I had a mysterious stranger to rescue me from a shipwreck."

"We do come in handy."

"If you ever have time off from your duties to the princess…" She trails off and her finger moves up his neck to settle on the curve below his ear. He spins her away before anything else can come of _that_ and hopes Cress isn't watching them. He usually doesn't turn anyone down when they flirt with him—has a penchant to flirt back—but he doesn't have an ounce of interest in making Luisa believe he might reciprocate. He glances around blindly, hoping Cress will see him and come back.

Luisa's hand gently caresses the nape of his neck, digs into his hair. A sigh escapes his lips involuntarily.

"You like that, don't you?" she coos.

He _does_ , but—no, no, no.

"Maybe the hero needs someone to take care of him for a change."

He squirms away. "I should get back to Cress. I mean, the princess. Her Highness."

"Her Highness is indisposed at the moment."

That's not Luisa's voice. It's—

"Lady Sybil," Thorne says, wrenching his hand free from Luisa.

Another hand takes its place, and Cress's guardian cuts in, demanding several dances with him in which she crushes his toes with her shoes far too many times. At least with Sybil there's no need to talk and no flirting whatsoever. He tries conversation in the beginning, but it's clear she only means to keep him from Cress.

As they dance, Thorne grows increasingly unsure if everyone else is dancing or watching them, but if it's a show they want, then he will give them one. A lifetime of subjects watching him has prepared him well. He twirls Sybil faster to the tempo, suppressing his cringe with a bravado smile when her fingernails dig into his shoulder blade and she grips his hand with the pressure of an eel.

At least he has time to think.

He _was_ going to tell Cress he loved her back.

Wasn't he?

But what even is love? Is it this strange thing he and Cress have, or is it the strange thing his father had with his mother while she was alive? They were never happy, even if their public declarations were peppered with _I love you's_. Is it what Cinder and Prince Kai will have if they are forced to marry? He's never had to think about it before. Mermaids have always thrown themselves at him and all he's needed are a few practiced lines and they turn to wilting seaweed before him. He's never thought about the words but he's said them many, many times.

Maybe he shouldn't say them to Cress after all.

He has the answer to half his question: Cress _does_ like him. She _loves_ him. His hesitancies should go away, because that's what he's been wondering this whole time. So why aren't they? Is it because he still doesn't know why Cress doesn't want people knowing her love in public? Or is it really him, not her, who hesitates? He is free with his hands and kisses but not yet with his heart or declarations.

A sudden breath on his ear, and Thorne jerks his head.

"I know who you are."

He fumbles a step.

"My lady?"

"I saw you."

He grasps for words, his mind spinning with what she could mean—what he hopes she doesn't mean. The music is loud, and he's growing tired. When the spin comes, he pushes her away, pulls her back again. Hopes Cress will finally cut in again.

"I'm sorry to say, my lady, that I cannot return the sentiment. I have heard of your beauty, however, from Her Highness."

"That's not what I mean."

"No?"

He sways them, revulsion mixing with a strange emotion: fear. Not the kind that he had in the sea, where it's for his life. No, this is a fear that slips down his spine and curdles his toes. Because he knows _exactly_ what she means.

"In the sea," she whispers. "You think I didn't see you with Cress? You're nothing but a fish my chefs could spear for dinner."

"With all due respect, that's rather unkind, my lady. I know my injuries from the shipwreck have mangled my eyes, but a comparison to a fish is hardly necessary."

Her nails claw back into his shoulder blade and he can't stop his wince this time.

"You saved her. I don't know how you're here, but I promise you, I will find out. If you interfere with my plans again, rest assured you will not find yourself in a comfortable guest room in the palace. The cold floor of a dungeon will seem like luxury after I'm through with you." Her nails are so sharp he wonders if she'll puncture the material separating her hand from his skin. He feels her shift and soon her lips graze his ear. "Stay away from Cress, merman."

Just as quickly, she's backing away and her dulcet tone is back. "Your Highness, would you like to cut back in? My feet grow weary with such an excellent dancer." She half-snickers, as if Thorne's dancing is actually terrible and she means to tell everyone so.

Cress is thrust in his arms, but he can barely hang on.

Sybil _saw_ him.

Which means she's more dangerous than he thought.

"Thorne? Are you okay?"

He shakes his head, tries to focus on Cress again. "Rather tired myself. Can we take this somewhere more private?" The laughter that follows his question—and not from Cress—makes him clear his throat. They have an audience. "Forgive me, Your Highness, I meant only to extricate myself from the dance floor. Perhaps a balcony of some sort, for fresh air?"

Cress mumbles something, clearly embarrassed, but she takes his hand and drags him across the floor. He doesn't bump into anyone, though, and he's pleased that at least her subjects respect their princess, even if Sybil doesn't. When the night air hits his cheeks, he's reminded of breaking through the surface, reaching Above, and the way the wind always cools his skin.

"You're sweating," Cress says.

He grins. "It's a good look, being covered in water."

"Sweat isn't water." Her tone is detached. "Up here it's smelly."

His grin falters. "Do I smell?"

"No, I…" She trails off, then lets out a breath that's ripe with frustration. "You can't say things like that to me in public, Thorne."

"Things like what?"

"That you want to go somewhere private with me."

"I corrected that. Apologized, even."

"You still need to be careful."

He lets go of her hand. Grips the railing and lets his weight sag against it, wondering how far down he would go if he bent too far and slipped. If he's as high as a ship and he could just tumble back into the water—to his home.

"Are you ashamed of me, Cress?"

A sharp intake of breath. "Of course not. I told you I _loved_ you."

He tiptoes around the topic carefully. "Shouldn't those declarations be accompanied by outward affections?"

"There are expectations, rules of etiquette. This isn't the middle of the sea. What we do alone…can't always be the same when we have an audience. I'm a _princess,_ Thorne. You wouldn't understand."

Ah, but he would, and he doesn't know why he can't bring himself to tell her that he's royalty as well. He reaches for the pendant on his neck, but it's hidden under his suffocating bowtie. Now that Sybil knows his secrets, he has to tread more carefully.

"I'm sorry, princess," he says anyway, searching for her tiny hand. But he remembers himself and places it back on the railing. "I didn't mean to make you uncomfortable."

"Oh, Thorne…" Her voice softens. "You don't. You make me so happy."

"I do?"

He's fishing for compliments now, but there's a part of him that really needs to hear it.

"Like tonight. You're in a strange land, turned into"—her voice lowers to a whisper—"a _human_ , and you can't even see what's happening. But you still came tonight to be with me, to this ridiculous ball that turned into a party for the entire kingdom."

"But you love balls."

"I do, but I also hate the spotlight. And I like wearing dresses, but I don't like the way everyone watches me in them."

"I revel in the spotlight."

"Lucky you." She moves closer, her side touching his. He imagines their bodies pressed together like this block the view of the way her hand falls gingerly over his on the railing, intertwining their fingers. "I was so happy to share the spotlight tonight with you. I'm glad I didn't have to do it alone. I couldn't have asked for a better companion."

"When you say _companion_ , do you mean those rooms—"

She elbows him, and he laughs. He mulls over her words, though. Cinder doesn't like the spotlight either, but after all these years it doesn't really bother her. It grows tedious for him, especially with his father always watching him, but he can't deny he enjoys people talking about him. He wants people to think he's great, just like he wants Cress to think he's great. Only this is different, and there's something unsettling about that.

"I'm glad I could be here to help your nerves," he says, the stroke of his thumb against her finger gentle and calming.

"Thanks for dancing with Sybil too."

"You are both wonderful dancers."

She giggles. "Sybil seems to like you."

"I beg to differ."

She shoves him playfully, and he's glad they're holding the railing. A strange vertigo sets in.

"She never dances with anyone. I'm glad she wants to get to know you."

"Cress, about Sybil—"

"I know you're still worried about what she did to me, but let's not talk about her tonight. I just want to stay out here with you all night and watch the stars."

He nods. "Let's do that then."

He's not entirely sure what to do about Sybil anyway. Maybe it is better to let it be, let him think about how to tackle that.

"I can't. I'm expected inside. And I'm expected to dance with other suitors."

"Oh." He considered this before coming to the ball tonight, wondered if Cress would want to dance with him at all. "Do they vie for your affections?"

She's silent. "I suppose if they do, it's one-sided."

"You mean, you desire—"

Her hand tightens against his. "I desire only you."

His heart beats loudly in his ears. "And I you."

"I wish I could _dance_ only with you."

He thinks of Luisa and her comments. "You don't think your subjects already know of your feelings? We have spent every day together, even if our displays of affection have been limited."

"For now, it needs to remain secret."

Sybil warned him to stay away from Cress anyway.

"Are we alone now?" he asks.

A beat. "No one can hear us, if that's what you mean."

He whispers, "If it's a secret romance you desire, princess, then I am more than happy to oblige."

She giggles again—nervously this time. "Only until we've gotten to know each other the appropriate time."

"So long as you're not having secret romances with those other suitors."

"Oh, Thorne…of course not. I would never do that."

That's all he needs to hear for now, so he pulls away and bows deeply. "I shall take my leave to allow you some time to dance with other suitors, then."

"They're only obligations."

"I understand." And he does, even if he hates it. But jealousy has never been his thing, and now that he knows Cress is actually _his_ , he can settle for princely manners where appropriate. This is one such time. The only good thing is that he can't _see_ the other suitors. He will imagine Cress unhappy in their arms, cringing the way he did when he danced with Sybil.

When Cress leaves him, he realizes that he still hasn't said anything about love to her, only romance, and maybe it's better that way. Still, there's something inside him that wants those words to fall from his lips, but if he has to pretend himself indifferent when they're not alone, maybe it's for the better. He'll keep his words to himself until he knows what to do with them, what exactly they mean.

Besides, when Cress sneaks into his room that night, she's not interested in talking anyway.


	15. Chapter 15

"Your Highness, you should really let us take care of this."

Scarlet gestures at her guard, but Cinder only narrows her eyes. She hasn't spent much time with Scarlet — not as much as Thorne, at least — but her brother always spoke highly of her. Cinder's not so sure why anymore, since for the last half hour, all the redhead has done is make assumptions about Cinder's capabilities.

So angry she can barely see straight, Cinder calls Scarlet away from the rest of the group.

"This is an order," Cinder hisses. "I demand at least one battalion that I can trust with a secret mission."

Scarlet curls her lip even as she straightens her back at Cinder's command. "I cannot give you a battalion if you do not tell me what your plans are." She glares. "Your Highness."

"You know exactly what my plans are."

"All the more reason not to grant your request without the King's approval."

"The King's approval?" Cinder gestures wildly at the open sea behind her. "The King's approval is why my brother — _and the second-in-line to the throne of Angeles!_ — was maimed and taken by none other than the Sea Witch."

"And you mean to rescue Prince Thorne."

Now Cinder throws up her hands. "Clearly, without your help."

She swims away so fast that she's worried if she looks back she'll accidentally set off her magic and pulverize not just Scarlet, but the entire courtyard. She holds onto her anger like it's her own personal trident, reminding herself that _this_ feeling is what she needs when she'll face Levana. _This anger._ If she can channel it, somehow put it into her magic, maybe she can take her down.

She so consumed with thoughts of destroying the Sea Witch that she doesn't hear Scarlet swim up beside her.

"Your Highness…"

"Leave me be."

"I want to help."

Cinder stops swimming.

"You are not the only one with someone you love in the Sea Witch's clutches. I have waited a long time to rescue someone, and with your permission, I would like to add another's life to those who need to be safely returned to Angeles."

"Fine." Cinder doesn't hesitate. "If it gets us to her territory."

"But it would be treason," Scarlet continues. "And as much as I wish to save Thorne as well, the consequences of not succeeding may be more dire than losing our prince. Did you see what Levana did to our fellow mermen? They're monsters."

Cinder catches the way she shudders, and a distant look grows on her face — wistful, almost, but sad.

"You cannot speak of such treason in front of the guard, Your Highness. These are strange times and we need to remain united."

"I thought you wanted to help."

"I cannot give you a battalion, but I give you my own skills and the skills of a few other talented soldiers. It's not much, and perhaps not the plan you had envisioned, but without the King's permission it will be impossible to sneak a battalion by."

Cinder sighs and fiddles with her disfigured fin. "What use are a few soldiers?"

Scarlet smiles sadly. "Better a few dedicated to the cause than many divided. We could sneak in and sneak out."

"I'm sure her territory has magic wards to keep us out."

"Then perhaps we bait her to let them down and let us in. And while they are down, the rest of us can sneak in."

It's not ideal. Not at all what Cinder wants. Her brother needs all the forces of Angeles and Common combined to even think about taking down Levana. And if they trespass — even if they can get Thorne out – there's not much anyone can do to stop the Sea Witch from retaliating and coming back into Angeles territory.

But Cinder doesn't care anymore.

About peace, about treaties.

Angeles has stayed quiet too long, allowed itself to be weak too long. If her father won't do anything to keep Levana from ruling the seas, then Cinder will. Whatever consequence this action brings on the three Merkingdoms, Cinder will be the one bearing that responsibility one day when she's the queen.

But even as she thinks it, her stomach twists and turns like the vortex Levana likes to create.

Cinder has been afraid of Levana all her life. Swum away the second a sign of her appeared.

She doesn't know how to defeat her. Not really. But she has to do this for Thorne, for herself, and for her merkingdom. If she doesn't do it, no one else will.

And her brother? If he has not already been turned into a shark hybrid, then he is likely awaiting a worser fate. She doesn't have time to stall, time to plan. Scarlet is offering her a different way to help, and she needs to take it and embrace it.

"Alright," she says to the redhead. "Where do we start?"

* * *

Prince Kai finds her on the eve of their departure.

Iko has sent dozens of messages by now detailing the prince's desire to meet with her privately, but Cinder has declined each one. In fact, she's never even bothered to reply, something which gives her a little more satisfaction than she expected and distresses her merlady-in-waiting to no end.

He catches her by the arm as she swims out of the kitchen carrying her dinner to-go. "Princess, please!"

If she weren't angry, she'd be shocked by his presumption at touching her bare skin without permission. "I have nothing to say to you."

Prince Kai splutters. "That's it? You would hold me in contempt because I won't make a rash decision that can affect the lives of thousands of mercitizens?"

"No, I hold you in contempt because you are a coward."

Hurt flickers over his expression, but she doesn't have time for it. Her father is already suspicious at how many meals she's avoided — to avoid Prince Kai — and there's only so long she can play it off as grief without giving herself away. She yanks her arm away but the movement only propels her backward, as he's already let go.

"I need to think about my merpeople. As a princess, surely you can understand the duty we have to our kingdoms. To our families."

He realizes what he said a second too late.

"No, wait! Cinder—"

She stops only to say, "You will not address me so informally, Prince Kai."

* * *

Her magic gets stronger with each use. She stays up all night practicing in the private rooms Scarlet has afforded her. Only Scarlet knows where she is — not even Iko has a clue that her princess is missing from her royal chambers. For the last three nights, she has spent every waking moment possible developing the energy that flows through the water from her hands.

Scarlet doesn't know, of course, what Cinder is doing, only that she wants to train. Cinder has also let Scarlet teach her a few tricks with the weapons the guard always carries around, but unlike Thorne, her father has never let her participate in any combat training. She doubts any of these quick tricks will save her, so she focuses on her magic.

She thinks of Prince Kai whenever she destroys a new artifact.

His chocolate eyes.

 _Bam!_ A sword splinters into a thousand pieces against the wall.

His tousled black hair.

 _Crash!_ Ruined dinner plates become shards.

His beautiful smile.

_Zing!_

He would've made a fine husband, she decides, now that her joining him is no longer an option. But a good-looking husband, or even a nice one, is not what Angeles needs.

It's not what Cinder needs.

Their group is ready, and though woefully small, they'll leave when the sea turns bright again. It won't be long now. Preparations have been made, lies have been told, excuses abound.

She throws her magic one last time, this time with both hands, her anger curdling through her veins and _CRACK!_ The wall threatens to crumble at her force, and she leaves the room before it can. _  
_

She needs someone who will stand up to the Sea Witch with her.

 _That's_ who she wants by her side.


End file.
